The Herb Stop Blog
3 Incredible Mushrooms + Their Studied Health Benefits
Mushrooms have been a hot topic for years because of their many purported health benefits and emerging research on their immune and cognitive-boosting effects!
Previously, we’ve discussed nootropics and mushrooms like reishi and turkey tail, and now we’re adding to the discussion with three other amazing mushrooms: Cordyceps, Chaga, and Maitake.
Keep reading to learn more about these mushrooms, their studied health benefits (spoiler alert — they’re fantastic!), and how you can incorporate them into your life.
Cordyceps Mushrooms
Cordyceps mushrooms/fungi are becoming increasingly popular, and for good reason! There are so many promising research studies on these mushrooms and their many benefits, which have long been appreciated and used in traditional Chinese medicine for treating fatigue, illness, kidney disease, and much more.
Incredibly, cordyceps have been shown to discourage the growth of human cancer cells for multiple types of cancer, including colon, lung, and liver cancers. These studies all reported cordyceps’s “anti-cancer” effects with promising results, which is truly amazing!
Another fantastic benefit of cordyceps mushrooms is their ability to encourage higher energy and endurance levels. Multiple studies have shown that cordyceps improve tolerance to high-intensity exercise and have an antifatigue effect.
In addition to all these benefits, cordyceps mushrooms are rich in antioxidants and other healthy vitamins and minerals, making them a great addition to your diet to encourage disease prevention and lower inflammation levels.
Support yourself with cordyceps mushrooms with these healthful remedies:
- Cordyceps Capsules: These mushroom capsules deliver a boost of cordyceps into your daily diet, promoting improved energy levels, reduced inflammation, and encouraging disease prevention. We love adding these mushrooms into our diet to help us get all those ultra-important antioxidants!
- Mushroom Coffee Blend - Om Mushrooms: Love robust, full-bodied coffee? This blend is a fabulous way to consume cordyceps, Lion’s Mane, turkey tail, and reishi mushrooms! These mushrooms are known for their supportive cognitive, immune health, and energy benefits, making this a wombo combo for everyday life.
Maitake Mushrooms
Maitake mushrooms are also known as “dancing mushrooms” in Japan because of a legend surrounding the mushrooms' discovery by a group of Buddhist nuns and woodcutters in the mountains. They were so excited about discovering the mushrooms that they all began dancing!
As for their health benefits, maitake mushrooms are adaptogens, meaning they may help your body fight mental and physical challenges and regulate itself better.
Besides being rich in antioxidants, fiber, potassium, and other critical vitamins, maitake mushrooms have been studied for their other health benefits, such as supporting more ideal glucose levels in animals. A 2015 study found that maitake mushrooms positively impacted glucose levels in animals with type 2 diabetes and may improve hyperglycemia.
Another study found that maitake mushrooms promoted lower cholesterol levels and even increased fatty acids that support improved energy levels. As a result, scientists believe that maitake mushrooms may support healthier arteries!
Here are a few of our favorite ways to incorporate maitake mushrooms into our day-to-day routine:
- Mega Mushroom Capsules: This powerful mushroom capsule blend contains maitake mushrooms, cordyceps, Chaga, Lion’s Mane, and reishi mushrooms, making it our most well-rounded, supportive mushroom supplement that promotes healthier energy, endurance, and stress response. If you’re looking for a mushroom capsule to encourage better overall health, this is our top recommendation!
- Tuba Prime - Deva Nutrition: If you enjoy a nice overall multi-vitamin, try this supplement with everything in it! It contains shitake, reishi, maitake, turkey tail, Chaga, and lion's mane mushrooms, along with a probiotic blend and a botanical blend of several wellness herbs.
Chaga Mushrooms
Chaga mushrooms impact cholesterol levels and diabetes, similar to maitake mushrooms.
Studies have found that one of the main components of Chaga mushrooms, polysaccharides, has antihyperglycemic activities. One study showed that taking Chaga mushrooms orally could dramatically restore body and fat mass weight, improve glucose tolerance, reduce fasting blood glucose levels, and increase hepatic glycogen levels and ameliorate insulin resistance.
The takeaway — studies have found that Chaga mushrooms have the potential to improve your liver’s antioxidant activities, increase “good” cholesterol, and reduce “bad” cholesterol.
Another impressive benefit is Chaga’s purported ability to boost the immune system and lower inflammation in the body. Chronic inflammation has been connected to so many health conditions, like rheumatoid arthritis, diabetes, osteoporosis, and heart disease, so this is incredible news!
Research has found that Chaga promotes the formation of beneficial cytokines, which are special proteins that regulate the immune system by stimulating white blood cells (important cells that fight off malicious viruses or bacteria).
Other study results found that Chaga extract reduced gut damage and inflammation by inhibiting inflammatory cytokines, stopping inflammation before it could form.
Interested in promoting reduced inflammation and improved cholesterol levels? Try supportive Chaga mushrooms in these incredible herbal remedies:
- Mushroom Coffee Instant Mix: Love coffee? This coffee is a surefire way to start your day off right with a delicious instant coffee blend packed with powerhouse mushrooms, including Chaga, Cordyceps, and Lion’s Mane. Simply mix two tablespoons of this potent blend into hot water and add your preferred coffee mix-ins, like sweetener, milk, or cream.
- Chaga Chai Rooibos Tea: If you’re more of a tea fan, you’ll love this spicy, caffeine-free chai tea complete with premium rooibos, ginger root, cinnamon, coconut, Chaga mushrooms, cardamom, and cloves for the ultimate warm, savory blend. This tea is incredible hot and iced, so it’s a fabulous year-round beverage choice.
- You can also support yourself with Chaga mushrooms in our previously mentioned Mega Mushroom Capsules.
We hope you feel inspired to try some mushroom supplements! These powerhouse mushrooms have so many unique health benefits, and we love seeing all the promising new research on them.
Happy mushrooming,
Herbalist Leilah & Herbalist Natalie
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Natalie Hajdu-Voakes is a consulting Herbalist with over 27 years of hands-on experience and the owner of The Herb Stop. |