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Red yeast rice adverse reactions and interactions:

A dangerous toxin has been found in red yeast rice supplements. Citrinin is a potential cancer causing toxin found in a concentration of 0.2 to 17.1 micrograms per gram in all of the commercially produced samples of red yeast rice extract tested in a study by Sabater-Vilar M. et al. A standardized method of lab testing for cancer producing toxins was performed with the citrinin found. A dose dependent mutagenic response was noted to occur from citrinin. (134)

There are serious concerns about reliable purity and standardization of red yeast rice extract supplements. The total amount of active ingredients varied from 0% to 0.58%. Only 1 out of 9 brands had the full spectrum of active compounds. Citrinin is a mutagenic toxin was found to be present in 7 of the 9 preparations. (135)