Well, that is not a fact Jerry.

Red yeast rice has been used for thousands of years. It IS a natural statin, and a very effective one. If you've never tried it, don't knock it, simply because you take pharma drugs. (I take pharmaceutical drugs for other things. )

Doing a simple internet search, you'll find plenty of info on Red yeast rice.

From About.com:

"Red yeast rice contains naturally-occurring substances called monacolins. Monocolins, particularly one called lovastatin, is believed to be converted in the body to a substance that inhibits HMG-CoA reductase, an enzyme that triggers cholesterol production. This is the way the popular statin drugs work."

High cholesteral runs high in my family, esp on my mother's side. We both get tested regularly for it. I have to for a couple of reasons.
Red yeast rice has kept both of ours down significantly and enough that we don't need pharma drugs in this case.

From wikipedia:

"In the late 1970s, researchers in the United States and Japan were isolating lovastatin from Aspergillus and monacolins from Monascus, respectively, the latter being the same yeast used to make red yeast rice but cultured under carefully controlled conditions. Chemical analysis soon showed that lovastatin and monacolin K are identical. The article "The origin of statins" summarizes how the two isolations, documentations and patent applications were just months apart.[2] Lovastatin became the patented, prescription drug Mevacor for Merck & Co. Red yeast rice went on to become a contentious, non-prescription dietary supplement in the United States and other countries."

It is not just some health food pill gimmick. And I'm not saying it will work for everyone, or that everyone will even want to try it. That is up to you. But it works for me, my mom and probably millions of other people. So don't knock it until you try it.

I should also mention my mom is a registered nurse. I spoke to her again about this just today. She said that both herself and nurses she has spoken to about drugs like lipitor, have seen that they can have really bad side effects. She said that Red yeast rice does not have the same threat.

Actualy stoneage man didnt live to a ripe old age.
Neanderthal man lived to a ripe old age of 30. Very few lived longer.
Fact is it was'nt until the late 1800's and early 1900's that the average age began t go higher then 50 or so.
In the 1700's 40-50 was considered extreme old age.
The average for the male of the species stands at 76 right now with the female being an average of 83.
Better foods, eatting habits, medical and dental care are what has extended the average life span to what it is.

Margerine is only a couple of molicules different from basic plastic.
Bugs wont even eat it. Put a Big pat of it out and see how long it takes to disappear.

Atkins diet?...umm no.

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"When I saw the Atkin's diet come out, I just cringed," said UC Berkeley's Joanne Ikeda,

one of the nation's leading nutrition experts. "I think this stuff makes money for Dr. Atkins and not much more than that. If he was right, the Italians who have twice as much carbohydrates in their diet would be worse off than we are. But they have half the obesity compared to us. The epidemiological evidence is just not there."

But study or no study, health professionals say Atkins is simply an unhealthy approach that can't work in the long run.

From Times Online
February 10, 2004

Founder of Atkins diet 'was obese when he died'
BY AGENCIES
Dr Robert Atkins, creator of the famous low-carbohydrate diet, was clinically obese at the time of his death, according to medical reports made public today.

The New York medical examiner's records, which have been published by the Wall Street Journal, state that Dr Atkins weighed 260 lbs. when he died last April after being injured in a fall on an icy New York City street.

At 6ft tall, Dr Atkins, 72, would have qualified as obese, according to the Centre for Disease Control and Prevention's body mass index calculator.

My diet no vegetables and a donut for breakfast.I can do between 3 and 400 push ups.

"It is interesting how those that know so little about the Atkins approach dismiss it so categorically,.. with such ignorance.  I'm sure after you do a little homework, you won't say such silly things."

Yikes!..calm down, just reporting what I read at the time of his death.

Whatever works for you, go for it with my blessing.  

The Atkins diet puts a strain on the liver as all the blood sugars that you normally get easily from carbs have to be created from fat by the liver, which makes it work much harder than it should. The two people whom I know well who used the Atkins diet successfully to lose weight had their livers monitored closely while on the diet.

I had what BC Ferries calls the All Aboard breakfast this morning.  Two over easy eggs, 6 pieces of bacon, three hash brown patties, two pieces of toast and coffee.

Its good to insulate the arteries now and again isn't it?