Lyli
09-02-2003, 09:44 PM
Hi Y'all,
My doc wants me to go on Red Yeast Rice for my cholesterol. Have any of you heard of this before?
Thanks
My doc wants me to go on Red Yeast Rice for my cholesterol. Have any of you heard of this before?
Thanks
Sponsor
pslam 91
09-03-2003, 11:48 AM
Yes, I have. On this board as a matter of fact. I have not heard of it until I read it on this board. Look back at last months entries. You might find info. I saw it at the health food store. I am coming off lipitor. I might give it a try. Keep us posted on your results. I might research it on the net. I'll leave you a message as to what I find.
pslam 91
09-03-2003, 11:50 AM
P.S I like the Y'all! I am from the south too!
doug99collins
09-05-2003, 10:50 AM
I read elsewhere on the net that you need to monitor your liver when going on this. I think you should try Pentathine, Omega 3 fish oils, policosanol and garlic pills along with regular excercise. policosanol has been shown to be better than statins in head to head studies. Do some searching on the net for studies on policosanol if you don't believe me.
Hope this helps, Doug
Hope this helps, Doug
pslam 91
09-05-2003, 02:22 PM
thanks Doug, I read some other boards about policosanal. I looked up the red rice today and found the same info you did. I will look up the "poli" on the web too.
Salvatore954
09-05-2003, 09:22 PM
Hello,
Real Red Yeast Rice is Lipitor. It is a statin. It was marketed in health stores under the name Cholestin, which was actually a mix of plant statins that worked better than RYR alone. When Lipitor's manufacturer patented statin as a drug, they forced Cholestin and all RYR extracts off the market. Their was a big lawsuit over all this. I think you may still be able to get the original Cholestin in Canada. Does it have the same side effects? I don't know. Some say yes;some say no.
There is another product called Cholestene. It is not the same as Cholestin. No red yeast rice extracts you find in the health store contain statins. It is illegal. So they do not work.
I agree with Doug's advice. But beware Policonsonal does not work on triglycerides whereas Panthetine does. Dosage for Policonsonal is 5-20 mg per day. Dosage for Panthetine is 300 mg 3 times per day.
If you have elevated Lp(a), you can take multigram dosages of Vitamin C and Lysine, and 1/4 - 1/2 gram of proline.
You have to experiment with all this natural stuff and see what works for you. It will help, but if you cannot possibly get your cholesterol numbers where you want them to be, you can probably take a much smaller dosage of a drug and hopefully avoid unwanted side effects.
Hope this helps.
Sal
Real Red Yeast Rice is Lipitor. It is a statin. It was marketed in health stores under the name Cholestin, which was actually a mix of plant statins that worked better than RYR alone. When Lipitor's manufacturer patented statin as a drug, they forced Cholestin and all RYR extracts off the market. Their was a big lawsuit over all this. I think you may still be able to get the original Cholestin in Canada. Does it have the same side effects? I don't know. Some say yes;some say no.
There is another product called Cholestene. It is not the same as Cholestin. No red yeast rice extracts you find in the health store contain statins. It is illegal. So they do not work.
I agree with Doug's advice. But beware Policonsonal does not work on triglycerides whereas Panthetine does. Dosage for Policonsonal is 5-20 mg per day. Dosage for Panthetine is 300 mg 3 times per day.
If you have elevated Lp(a), you can take multigram dosages of Vitamin C and Lysine, and 1/4 - 1/2 gram of proline.
You have to experiment with all this natural stuff and see what works for you. It will help, but if you cannot possibly get your cholesterol numbers where you want them to be, you can probably take a much smaller dosage of a drug and hopefully avoid unwanted side effects.
Hope this helps.
Sal
JETowle
09-16-2003, 07:21 PM
I have been taking Red Yeast Rice for about 7 months now. I starting taking it as an alternative to the prescriptions my doctor told me to use. My cholestorol in June was more than good, according to the doctor.
A couple of weeks ago I started having joint pains, really bad joint pains. At times I couldn't even sleep at night. My wife and I attributed them to some work I was doing around the house. (duh, what does 2+2=?)
Anyway, I have been off the RYR for 3 days now and the pains are starting to go away and I am starting to have more energy/strength.
I am not sure what I am going to do now, but I just wanted to warn you all about the RYR.
--James
A couple of weeks ago I started having joint pains, really bad joint pains. At times I couldn't even sleep at night. My wife and I attributed them to some work I was doing around the house. (duh, what does 2+2=?)
Anyway, I have been off the RYR for 3 days now and the pains are starting to go away and I am starting to have more energy/strength.
I am not sure what I am going to do now, but I just wanted to warn you all about the RYR.
--James
martensite1
10-12-2005, 01:05 PM
Hi everyone...As a 47 year old male with slightly elevated cholesterol I started to take 2400 mg of red yeast rice per day for the past week and am having the same side effects as the statin drugs. Severe groin pain and general weekness and a condition that feels like the flu coming on. Just a warning to everyone to check out the possible side effects before starting to take. Pravocol had the least side effects for me, but was not as effective in lowering the cholesterol as lipitor. I'm getting to the point of forgetting the whole point of lowering my cholesterol if I feel so lousy.:confused:
gardeninggal
10-12-2005, 06:56 PM
Hi everyone...As a 47 year old male with slightly elevated cholesterol I started to take 2400 mg of red yeast rice per day for the past week and am having the same side effects as the statin drugs. Severe groin pain and general weekness and a condition that feels like the flu coming on. Just a warning to everyone to check out the possible side effects before starting to take. Pravocol had the least side effects for me, but was not as effective in lowering the cholesterol as lipitor. I'm getting to the point of forgetting the whole point of lowering my cholesterol if I feel so lousy.:confused:
Martin, I know just how you feel and I have decided that I am willing to do some things to help keep my cholesterol in check but not to the point to which my life is consumed with it all. I have read so much and most of what I read contradicts itself and soon I don't know what to believe. I am convinced that it is not cholesterol that is the problem but rather inflammation and I know we need cholesterol to be healthy. What I really want is some research that is not connected with any drug company to come out and tell us what is the best cholesterol number to have. The drug companies want the number lowered all the time so that more people will be added to their list of life time statin takers. I am more interested in having my food be my medicine and besides I like to eat good food. So if I live one year less at least I enjoyed every moment of it. :D
Martin, I know just how you feel and I have decided that I am willing to do some things to help keep my cholesterol in check but not to the point to which my life is consumed with it all. I have read so much and most of what I read contradicts itself and soon I don't know what to believe. I am convinced that it is not cholesterol that is the problem but rather inflammation and I know we need cholesterol to be healthy. What I really want is some research that is not connected with any drug company to come out and tell us what is the best cholesterol number to have. The drug companies want the number lowered all the time so that more people will be added to their list of life time statin takers. I am more interested in having my food be my medicine and besides I like to eat good food. So if I live one year less at least I enjoyed every moment of it. :D
ARIZONA73
10-12-2005, 08:10 PM
The drug companies want the number lowered all the time so that more people will be added to their list of life time statin takers. I am more interested in having my food be my medicine and besides I like to eat good food. So if I live one year less at least I enjoyed every moment of it. :D
It's a mistake to assume that just because you decided not to take statins that somehow your life will be cut short. Of course, that's what the drug companies would like you to believe. But the truth is, statins have not been shown to lower overall mortality. In fact, when you take into consideration all of the problems which can potentially arise from long-term use of these drugs, you may actually enjoy a longer, healthier life. Except for a relatively small percentage of high risk patients who are taking these drugs, I don't think we're doing the millions of other people any favors by putting them on these drugs for life. In fact, we may ultimately end up with more problems than if we just left well enough alone.
It's a mistake to assume that just because you decided not to take statins that somehow your life will be cut short. Of course, that's what the drug companies would like you to believe. But the truth is, statins have not been shown to lower overall mortality. In fact, when you take into consideration all of the problems which can potentially arise from long-term use of these drugs, you may actually enjoy a longer, healthier life. Except for a relatively small percentage of high risk patients who are taking these drugs, I don't think we're doing the millions of other people any favors by putting them on these drugs for life. In fact, we may ultimately end up with more problems than if we just left well enough alone.