Hi everyone,
I was contacted this evening by a very worried mother who had been told by a
relative that babies fed breastmilk for over 12 months of age had higher
blood cholesterol levels and could be at increased risk of heart disease
later in life. The mothers baby is almost 12 months old and she is concerned
that she is putting her infant at risk.

She claims that a hospital in Sydney Australia is giving out this info, but
I haven't heard anything along these lines (any other Aussie Lactnetters
know about this??).

My gut feeling is that this is untrue, but I know of only one study from
?czech republic which compared lipid levels in 6 year olds with the
length of time they were breastfed for, and found a protective effect from
breastfeeding.

If anyone has any other details or research I would appreciate it.

TIA

Fiona Coombes
Doctor and IBCLC
Perth Western Australia