Cholesterol-lowering effects of a
proprietary Chinese red-yeast-rice dietary supplement
Heber D, Yip
I, Ashley JM, Elashoff DA, Elashoff
RM, Go
VL
Center for
Human Nutrition, Department of Medicine, UCLA School of
Medicine, Los
Angeles,
CA
BACKGROUND:
We examined the cholesterol-lowering effects of a
proprietary Chinese red-yeast-rice supplement in an American
population consuming a diet similar to the American Heart
Association Step I diet using a double-blind,
placebo-controlled, prospectively randomized 12-wk controlled
trial at a university research center.
OBJECTIVE:
We evaluated the lipid-lowering effects of this
red-yeast-rice dietary supplement in US adults separate from
effects of diet alone. DESIGN: Eighty-three healthy subjects
(46 men and 37 women aged 34-78 y) with hyperlipidemia [total
cholesterol, 5.28-8.74 mmol/L (204-338 mg/dL); LDL
cholesterol, 3.31-7.16 mmol/L (128-277 mg/dL);
triacylglycerol, 0.62-2.78 mmol/L (55-246 mg/dL); and HDL
cholesterol 0.78-2.46 mmol/L (30-95 mg/dL)] who were not being
treated with lipid-lowering drugs participated. Subjects were
treated with red yeast rice (2.4 g/d) or placebo and
instructed to consume a diet providing 30% of energy from fat,
<10% from saturated fat, and <300 mg cholesterol daily.
Main outcome measures were total cholesterol, total
triacylglycerol, and HDL and LDL cholesterol measured at weeks
8, 9, 11, and 12.
RESULTS:
Total cholesterol concentrations decreased significantly
between baseline and 8 wk in the red-yeast-rice-treated group
compared with the placebo-treated group [(xSD) 6.570.93 mmol/L
(25436 mg/dL) to 5.380.80 mmol/L (20831 mg/dL); P < 0.001].
LDL cholesterol and total triacylglycerol were also reduced
with the supplement. HDL cholesterol did not change
significantly.
CONCLUSIONS: Red yeast rice significantly reduces total
cholesterol, LDL cholesterol, and total triacylglycerol
concentrations compared with placebo and provides a new,
novel, food-based approach to lowering cholesterol in the
general population.
Publication Types:
Clinical trial
Randomized controlled trial
Comments:
Comment in: Am J Clin Nutr 1999 Jul;70(1):106-8
