Cholesterol-lowering effects of a proprietary Chinese red-yeast-rice dietary supplement.
What this study found
Red yeast rice lowered total cholesterol and LDL cholesterol compared with placebo, with no significant change in HDL cholesterol. Total cholesterol fell from 6.47 ± 0.78 to 5.38 ± 0.80 mmol/L at 8 weeks and 5.43 ± 0.80 at 12 weeks in the red yeast rice group, versus 6.59 ± 0.75 to 6.57 ± 0.93 and 6.47 ± 0.93 in placebo. LDL decreased from 4.47 ± 0.70 to 3.47 ± 0.70 at 8 weeks and 3.49 ± 0.70 at 12 weeks, with between-group differences at 8 and 12 weeks of P < 0.001. Triglycerides showed a smaller effect (P = 0.05 at 8 weeks; P = 0.054 at 12 weeks). No serious adverse effects were reported.
- Study & population
- This was a 12-week double-blind, placebo-controlled randomized trial in 88 white US adults with hyperlipidemia who were not taking lipid-lowering drugs.
- Intervention
- The active regimen was a proprietary Chinese red yeast rice product (Cholestin) taken orally as 2.4 g daily for 12 weeks, delivered as 600 mg capsules.
- Key limitation
- The trial was relatively small and short at 12 weeks, which limits assessment of long-term efficacy and safety.
View source
Open PDFOriginal abstract
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 [(x+/-SD) 6.57+/-0.93 mmol/L (254+/-36 mg/dL) to 5.38+/-0.80 mmol/L (208+/-31 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.