Policosanol

A sugar-cane wax lipid supplement whose spectacular early results never replicated outside Cuba.

A structured monograph in Prometheus's bundled library. Its grades are the monograph's own reading of the evidence, not a peer-reviewed review.

1 at grade D — 1 graded row

What is known

Each outcome with its grade (how strong the evidence is, A to D), the size of the effect where the entry records one, and how often studies agree.

Outcome	Grade	Effect size	Agreement
LDL cholesterolFailed to replicate	Evidence grade D	Trivial	low

Read off the same rows as above. Nothing here is added that the entry does not itself record.

Policosanol is a mixture of long-chain alcohols from sugar cane marketed for cholesterol.

Proposed to inhibit cholesterol synthesis; the mechanism was never robustly confirmed.

Early Cuban studies reported large LDL reductions; independent trials elsewhere found essentially no effect. A textbook non-replication.

Not recommended.

Generally safe; the issue is lack of effect.

The benefits vanished outside the original labs. Don't bother.

As the entry records it, from the studies it summarises. Not a recommendation for you — doses that suit a trial population may not suit you.

Entries that share this one's tags or conditions.

GuggulAn Ayurvedic lipid resin that disappointed Western trials and can raise LDL in some.Evidence grade D
Artichoke Leaf ExtractA digestive-and-cholesterol botanical with modest LDL and dyspepsia data.Evidence grade C
BerberineA plant alkaloid that behaves like a metabolic drug — real glucose and lipid effects, and it deserves drug-level caution.Evidence grade B
Bergamot (Citrus Bergamia)A citrus polyphenol extract with promising LDL and triglyceride data — an emerging natural lipid helper.Evidence grade C

This entry lists no references of its own.

Last revised Jul 10, 2026. A grade is this entry's reading of the evidence, not medical advice.