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Red Yeast Rice Powder Extract Overview:

Red yeast rice has been used in China for centuries as both a food and as a medicinal substance. Fermenting a type of yeast called Monascus purpureus over red rice makes it. In Chinese medicine, red yeast rice is used to promote blood circulation, soothe upset stomach, and invigorate the function of the spleen, a body organ that destroys old blood cells and filters foreign substances. In addition, this dietary supplement has been used traditionally for bruised muscles, hangovers, indigestion, and colic in infants. Recently, it has been discovered that red yeast rice contains substances that are similar to prescription medications that lower cholesterol. There is also growing interest in evaluating red yeast rice for use as a natural food dye and/or preservative.

The overlap of red yeast rice use as both a medicine and a food in traditional Chinese practice is mirrored by a modern day controversy in the United States. Currently, red yeast rice is classified as a dietary supplement by the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA); however, given its contents and function, there are many who feel that it is actually being used as an unregulated medication. There is ongoing debate, therefore, about whether to change the status of red yeast rice to a prescription drug¡ªwhich would require much greater regulation.