Red Yeast Rice refers to the product of fermentation of rice with various strains of the yeast Monascus purpureus. It has been used for centuries in China in foods and in medicines. It was introduced in the U.S. during the latter half of the 1990s as a dietary supplement for the promotion of healthy serum lipid levels. It may have hypocholesterolemic and hypotriglyceridemic activities in some. It also has been used in China for over 1,000 years for medicinal purposes. It was described in an ancient Chinese list of drugs as useful for improving blood circulation and for alleviating indigestion and diarrhea. Recently, Red Yeast Rice has been developed by Chinese and American scientists as a product to lower blood lipids, including cholesterol and triglycerides. However, there is an ongoing legal issue regarding the status of Red Yeast Rice, particularly those preparations that contain statins, as a dietary supplement.
Since the 1970s, human studies have reported that Red Yeast Rice lowers blood levels of total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein/LDL ("bad cholesterol"), and triglyceride levels. Red Yeast Rice has been used with diet and exercise, and under the care of a doctor, to lower elevated cholesterol and triglyceride levels that are in the mild to moderate range. HDL (good) cholesterol levels have been increased with Red Yeast Rice. It is classified as a dietary supplement by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
References:
MedicineNet. http://www.medicinenet.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=14999
PDR Health. http://www.pdrhealth.com/drug_info/nmdrugprofiles/nutsupdrugs/red_0329.shtml
http://altmedicine.about.com/od/herbsupplementguide/a/redyeastrice.htm
