Tag: red yeast rice

Study – For Lowering Cholesterol, Statins Work, Supplements Don’t

A study comparing a statin drug and six common supplements to placebo shows that only the drug lowers bad cholesterol.

/ November 9, 2022

Statins beat supplements

Red yeast rice supplements have poor quality control and there's no clear evidence they do anything beneficial. So why take it?

/ August 24, 2017

Consumer Reports Misses the Boat on Back Pain

Consumer Reports' recent articles on low back pain address anecdotal customer satisfaction rather than scientific evidence of effectiveness.

/ June 27, 2017

AAFP CME Program Succumbs to “Integrative Medicine”

For many years I have been using Continuing Medical Education (CME) programs offered by the American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP). The FP Essentials program consists of a monthly monograph with a post-test that can be submitted electronically for 5 hours of CME credit. Over a 9-year cycle, a complete family medicine curriculum is covered to prepare participants for the re-certification board...

/ April 2, 2013

Red Yeast Rice and Cholesterol

While much of CAM is ridiculous or implausible, herbal remedies are an exception. Plants produce pharmacologically active substances; in fact, the science of pharmacology grew out of herbalism. Some herbal remedies have not been scientifically tested, but others have been tested and are clearly effective. Nevertheless, these are seldom if ever the best choice for treatment. One natural remedy stands out. Red...

/ July 24, 2012

Red Yeast Rice to Lower Cholesterol

The Medical Letter,  a highly respected source of reliable independent evaluations of drugs and therapeutics, has just published an evaluation of red yeast rice (Vol 51, Issue 1320, P 71-2, Sept 7, 2009). It has been widely promoted as a “natural” alternative to prescription medications for lowering blood LDL cholesterol levels. Studies have indeed shown that red yeast rice reduces LDL cholesterol...

/ September 22, 2009