Red yeast rice —a traditional Chinese remedy created by fermenting red yeast over rice—may help people with high cholesterol, according to recent research.
For the study, scientists assigned 62 people with high cholesterol to 12 weeks of counseling on nutrition and exercise. Half of the study members also took 1,800 mg of red yeast rice in supplement form daily. Prior to the study, all participants had taken prescription statins (a class of drugs designed to lower cholesterol levels) but found that the medication caused severe muscle pain.
By the study's end, participants taking red yeast rice saw their levels of LDL ("bad") cholesterol fall by 27 percent. In comparison, those who didn't receive red yeast rice had only a 6 percent drop in LDL cholesterol.
Past research suggests that red yeast rice helps reduce cholesterol levels by inhibiting HMG-CoA reductase, an enzyme crucial to cholesterol production.
It is estimated that 15 % of people taking statin drugs for high cholesterol stop taking them because of the side effects. This is good news for that population that up until now have had few if any alternatives.
It has been known for a long time that red yeast rice was extremely beneficial for cholesterol, but it was mocked by doctors, “scientists” and the F.D.A.. This study may help to eliminate their snickers, but the real lesson here is that while science denies the effectiveness of alternative medicine, people are constantly cured by it – regardless of testing, studies, or marketing.