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Apparently Red Rice Extract capsules for Cholesterol are really unsafe to take while breastfeeding - is this true even for a much older breastfeeding toddler?
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As for a toddler, this would depend on dose and amount of breastmilk. We just worry that infants need lots of cholesterol to grow properly. Disrupting cholesterol levels in milk with red rice extract or Statins may interrupt proper growth and development in infants. This is not known for sure, but it is a worry we have.
Tom Hale
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Tom Hale - Thank you. What does a breastfeeding mom with really high cholesterol do then, when it comes to breastfeeding an older toddler ?
Stop breastfeeding? or are there meds that are regarded as safer then Statins and Red rice extract?
The only other one that I know of is Ry Chol containing Barberry Root extract and Phytosterols.
Thank you.Comment
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Hi Nikita,
Most organizations recommend delaying treatment until a mom is no longer breastfeeding. This recommendation may be changing, but is still standard due to an abundance of caution with the risks Dr. Hale mentioned above.
Little research has been conducted on the true impact of maternal statin use in breastfeeding infants. Both rosuvastatin and pravastatin concentrations in breast milk have been studied and peak levels were determined to be low (Pravastatin RID: 0.13%; Rosuvastatin RID 1.5%). Both values are well below the standard 10% RID cut-off typically considered safe for infant exposure. There is currently no data available on infant adverse events associated with statins and breastmilk. Statins have been used in some breastfeeding women. So far, there are no case reports of abnormal infant development. The risks here are only theoretical...but the severity of the risk is significant.
I wouldn't recommend any other herbals to treat cholesterol. Not only would they have the same theoretical risk, but they usually don't have data to show a benefit.
Kaytlin Krutsch, PharmD, MBA, BCPSComment
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