NOW Red Omega  

Helps to maintain/support cardiovascular health. Helps to reduce serum triglycerides/triacylglycerols. Red Omega is an innovative natural health product that has made it possible to maintain and support cardiovascular health by taking only one supplement. It combines the three most popular nutrients for heart health: Red Yeast Rice, Co-Q10 and Omega-3 Fish Oil.

Red Omega combines therapeutic levels of Red Yeast Rice (RYR), Co-Q10 and Fish Oil to offer broad spectrum support for cardiovascular health. Red Yeast Rice or Hong Qu, the product of rice fermented with Monascus purpureus yeast, has been used for centuries in China in foods and in medicines. The use of RYR was apparently first noted in the Tang dynasty, where it was used to add colour and flavour to a range of foods and was also used in Chinese folk medicine for treating indigestion, diarrhea, and for improving blood circulation. For use in natural health products, the fermentation process is carefully controlled to increase the concentration of mevinic acids. RYR contains ten mevinic acids, also known as monacolins, the highest concentration of which is constituted by lovastatin (also referred to as monacolin K or mevinolin). These compounds, which constitute about 0.4% of red rice, competitively inhibit 3-hydroxy-3-methyl-glutaryl-coenzyme (HMG-CoA) reductase to block cholesterol biosynthesis. Red Yeast also contains sterols, including beta-sitosterol, campesterol, stigmasterol, and sapogenin; isoflavones and isoflavone glycosides and monounsaturated fatty acids. The overall cholesterol –lowering effects of red yeast is likely due to the combination of lovastatin, mevinic acids, plant sterols and other constituents. Red Omega provides <1 mg/day of lovastatin at the recommended dosage. This is within the limits set by NHPD for lovastatin-free red yeast rice (the only form eligible for registration as a natural health product). Coenzyme Q10 or CoQ10 belongs to a family of substances called ubiquinones. CoQ10 is a water-insoluble substances involved in electron transport and energy production in mitochondria. CoQ10 is manufactured by the body and stored in the heart and other organs. It is a strong antioxidant that supports healthy heart function. Omega-3 fatty acids from fish oils have anti-inflammatory and antithrombotic effects because they compete with arachidonic acid in the cyclooxygenase and lipoxygenase pathways. Fish oils inhibit the arachidonic acid synthesis of thromboxane A2 which causes platelet aggregation and vasoconstriction. Fish oils can also cause increased production of prostacyclin, a prostaglandin that reduces platelet aggregation. Omega-3 fatty acids seem to suppress COX-2 expression and the inflammatory cytokines interleukin (IL)-1 alpha and tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-alpha. Fish oils are used for cardiovascular conditions, including stroke and heart disease, due to their anti-inflammatory and antithrombotic effects.

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