• Natural Product Sciences
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• v.25 no.4
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• pp.293-297
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• 2019

Policosanol extracted from sugarcane wax is a generic term used for total fatty alcohols obtained from esterification of fatty acids. It has been approved as a health functional food by the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety of Korea in 2006. Policosanol is well-known to aid in lowering blood cholesterol level. Recently, several studies have reported the physiological activities of policosanol, such as anti-inflammatory effects, antioxidant effects, and lowering of the incidence of ageing-related diseases, for example, hypertension, stroke, among others. This review describes the physiological activities of policosanol and its applications in the field of health functional foods.