It is interesting that this should find its way into the news at the same time the US medical establishment is lowering what they consider (claim) to be safe cholesterol numbers.
Dogma now is a max of 180 (overall). Lemmings. Follow the money.
Yup. When my doctor recently doubled my cholesterol medicine, I quit taking it completely.
I had a physical in 2005, during which the cholesterol screening showed a total of 210. I was told by my doc that that number was on the high side of normal, but despite being WAY overweight, he never mentioned anything about cholesterol meds.
I ended up in the hospital on Christmas Day, short of breath. I was in A-Fib, and my PB was high. Turns out, my heart function was at about 15%, but after several days of testing, they realized that there was no underlying heart disease, and that I must have had a virus that attacked the heart. After a few days of some powerful drugs, the function had increased up to 40%.
I had a follow-up with my regular Doc (a different one from the one I'd seen in 2005), in mid January, and he made noises about putting me on cholesterol meds, based on my Christmas experience. I told him I'd never had high cholesterol, or BP for that matter, even at my highest weight and nine months pregnant. I had a full physical three weeks ago, and my total cholesterol was at 183, with both HDL and LDL numbers right smack dab in the middle of the normal range. I guess my Doc won't be worrying about those cholesterol meds, after all. ;o)