Dr. Tzu-Ming Pan is an Emeritus Professor of Biotechnology at the National Taiwan University in Taipei. His research over many years focused on beneficial molecules produced by Monascus and many other plants and bacteria. His lab identified a strain of Monascus that did not make monacolin K, yet surprisingly was able to reduce LDL cholesterol in animal models.
Figure 4. The Monascus strain used to make Ankascin (A), and the chemical structures of Monascin (B) and Ankaflavin (C).
After several years of work, Dr. Pan and his group isolated two molecules from red yeast rice that were responsible for this cholesterol lowering effect. These molecules, named monascin and ankaflavin, are chemically very similar (see Figure 4), suggesting that they function in similar or complementary cellular pathways. In fact, they turned out to have other remarkable properties. Not only could monascin and ankaflavin lower LDL cholesterol levels in the blood, they also helped in the management of blood pressure, blood sugar, and Alzheimer’s disease.
Dr. Pan’s group and others have published almost 100 research papers in the last 10 years that reported these findings. The red yeast rice extract they produced was called Ankascin 568-R. It is enriched with monascin and ankaflavin, and its safety and efficacy have been demonstrated in several clinical trials for different treatment conditions.
This data led to the inclusion of Ankascin in the FDA’s list of New Dietary Ingredients that are reasonably expected to be safe. It also received approval for sale by Health Canada’s Natural and Non-Prescription Health Products Directorate. As a supplement that is free of both monacolin K and citrinin, it is safe and effective for both short and long term use.
NOT ONLY COULD MONASCIN AND ANKAFLAVIN LOWER LDL CHOLESTEROL LEVELS IN THE BLOOD, THEY ALSO HELPED IN THE MANAGEMENT OF BLOOD PRESSURE, BLOOD SUGAR, AND ALZHEIMER’S DISEASE.
Theracurmin™ is a nanosized curcumin formula made from a mixture of micronized curcumin and gum ghatti solution. Theracurmin’s particle size is reduced via a wet mill grinding process and then dispersed using a high-pressure blending technique. This creates a colloidal suspension that is highly water soluble. BCM-95® is a patented curcumin formula that combines curcumin and volatile agents in turmeric essential oil to increase bioavailability. The formula is also comprised of lecithin and medium chain triglycerides to further assist in this process. Turmeric essential oil constitutes approximately 9% of the formulation. Meriva® uses micelle technology to create a patented Phytosome®
In the battle for weight loss, you have new ammunition. Fiber is an often overlooked ingredient in effective weight loss. While everyone else is looking at calories and carbs, you should be concentrating on getting more fiber if you want to lose weight. What is Fiber? Fiber is the portion of plant foods that your body can’t digest. Many kinds of food contain fiber, such as fruits, vegetables, grains, legumes, nuts and seeds. There are two kinds of fiber; soluble and insoluble. Insoluble fiber aids your digestive system in passing food through. Soluble fiber helps your body rid itself of
Your best allies when it comes to losing weight and controlling blood sugar are a healthy lifestyle, plenty of exercise and natural supplements. Natural health supplements support your blood sugar and weight management goals. Here are five of the best to try. 1. Active Green Tea Green tea has countless health benefits. It revs up the metabolism, keeping people slim and energetic. The Active Green Tea supplement, with green tea extract as its primary ingredient, provides a concentrated punch of antioxidants. It allows one to experience all of the benefits of green tea without actually having to drink tea all