The latest: Tocotrienol-rich Vitamin E from rice bran oil helps reduce high cholesterol and helps soy perform a similar function.
The K.L. Jordan Heart Research Foundation says tocotrienol-rich vitamin E reduced LDL or "bad" cholesterol by 20.6 percent and raised HDL or "good" cholesterol for patients in its study. Researchers say the rice bran extract offers a safe and effective way to reduce cholesterol levels compared with prescription drugs that can have negative side effects.
A study at Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center -- published in the Archives of Internal Medicine -- finds soy that has the isoflavones removed from it does not lower cholesterol. Author Dr. John Crouse says even soy that has a low dose of isoflavones will not lower levels.
The Wake Forest study shows another added benefit -- as the isoflavone content in the soy increased, blood pressure decreased among the female participants. The next step is to figure out how isoflavones work -- and there is some evidence such substances need the soy protein to work effectively at lowering cholesterol.
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