KNOXVILLE, Tenn.—Red yeast rice modestly decreased total and low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol, was well-tolerated, and was an acceptable alternative in patients intolerant of other lipid-lowering medications, in a recent study from the University of Tennessee Medical Center (Am J Cardiol. 2010 Mar 1;105(5):664-6).
Researchers reviewed approximately 1,400 clinical charts and identified 25 patients treated with red yeast rice supplements for four weeks or longer. The patients were included if they had pre- and post-treatment lipid levels without simultaneous changes in other lipid-lowering medications. These patients had experienced muscle pain (68 percent), gastrointestinal (GI) intolerance (16 percent), and/or elevated levels of the enzyme alanine aminotransferase (8 percent), which indicates liver damage, with previous use of other lipid-lowering agents, such as statins.
Total cholesterol decreased 15 percent (P<0.001) and LDL cholesterol decreased 21 percent (P<0.001) during five to 16 weeks treatment. Most (92 percent) patients tolerated the treatment, and many (56 percent) achieved their LDL cholesterol goal. In patients unable to tolerate daily statin use, the total cholesterol level decreased 13 percent (P <0.001) and LDL cholesterol decreased 19 percent (P <0.001).
Chinese red yeast rice is a dietary supplement containing monacolins, unsaturated fatty acids, and phytosterols capable that have been shown to lower LDL cholesterol. The researchers of this study noted few previous studies have reported on its use in clinical practice or in statin-intolerant patients.