Guest guest Posted August 7, 2009 Report Share Posted August 7, 2009 This is taken from the article at: http://sciencebasedpharmacy.wordpress.com:80/2009/08/06/red-yeast-rice/ It maybe of interest to some here. Have a great day, Clare in Tassie Among natural products for the treatment of high cholesterol, red yeast rice (RYR) is among the most requested alternatives to prescription statins. And there’s a reason why: it actually works – it lowers bad (LDL) cholesterol! But before we start treating high cholesterol with yeast, let’s dig a bit deeper. Red yeast rice is created by fermenting rice with the Monascus purpureus yeast. What’s remarkable about this fermentation process is one of the by-products: A chemical called monacolin K is produced, which is chemically identical to the drug lovastatin (sold by Merck under the brand name Zocor). [1] The fermentation process produces other chemicals, including sterols such as beta-sitosterol, isoflavones, and monounsaturaed fatty acids. [1] It’s believed that the cholesterol lowering-effects are mainly due to the lovastatin, but the other active ingredients may also contribute some effect. [1] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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