The Wonders of Medicinal Mushrooms

Medicinal Mushrooms and Fungi That Heal

By Mary G. Holland

September 30, 2016

Intro to Medicinal Mushrooms and Fungi

As an amateur herbologist and naturopath, I’ve discovered there are some amazingly effective mushrooms and fungus that help heal various conditions, which are being used effectively in the alternative, complimentary health care field.

This article is a short intro to some of the most potent medicinal fungi that I’m familiar with. There are others.  If you are interested in using any of these for a serious condition, you must do your research and work with qualified professionals.  Although mild, and some have been used for thousands of years, these mushrooms have real pharmaceutical effects, and they do not all behave the same.  Traditional herbologists sometimes use these in conjunction with herbal treatments.  There have been some studies performed combining these with some, but not all, mainstream medicines.  Some medicinal mushrooms can augment, and often alleviate side effects from, many allopathic (mainstream) drugs, without impacting the pharmaceutical drug’s effectiveness.  Others can reduce or adversely impact the effect of mainstream drugs, so always consult your healthcare professional and naturopathic practitioner before using medicinal fungi.  Occasionally, people have allergic reactions, so if you are prone, use caution.

Collectively, medicinal mushroom and fungi benefits include: anti-tumor and cancer-fighting, immune enhancer, anti-bacterial, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, anti-viral, blood pressure, cardio-vascular, cholesterol reduction, blood sugar regulation, kidney cleansing, liver cleansing, nerve tonic, sexual potentiator, lung/respiratory benefits, stress reduction. Their health enhancing properties are backed up by peer-researched scientific studies conducted in the USA and abroad, which trace the positive effects to polysaccharide compounds found in many tree-dwelling fungus species. Research suggests certain ones can augment or enhance standard allopathic cancer treatments like surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation, with no negative impact, significantly improving patient survival rates. Others will clear toxins from the blood, liver and kidneys, which can impact the effect and dose of pharmaceuticals you are taking.  Again, consult a naturopathic doctor before proceeding with self-treatment.

Noted Authorities

Many of the references below are to work by research mycologist Paul Stamets of Fungi Perfecti in Olympia, Washington. I became aware of Paul (www.fungi.com or www.fungiperfecti.com) in the early 1990s by attending one of his week-long seminars he’d just started offering, for commercially raising shiitake mushrooms. Although I didn’t pursue this as a second career, I was fascinated with several mushrooms’ health promoting qualities.  I still experiment with using and cultivating these at home. I recommend both of Paul’s books on medicinal and cultivated gourmet mushrooms.  They are very clear, well organized, and informative.

Dr. Andrew Weil is a noted authority on the health properties of many mushrooms, and fancies an overlapping but different mix than Paul. These two researchers have worked together on projects. There are other authorities out there, but I like these two guys most because of each one’s abiding generosity sharing their extensive knowledge in well organized websites, books, cross references to other research, and targeted products. Both have been pioneers in introducing the Western public to the health promoting (and ecologically restoring) properties of various higher fungi.  Their work has in part contributed to the emergence of many other businesses and websites that sell products and share information on medicinal fungi.

Research and Links

Here are links to some great resources on these amazing fungi.

• http://www.fungi.com/blog/items/information-about-mushrooms-health.html – This is Paul’s list of who’s who in the field of health promoting fungi; books; research papers; and FAQs about the health properties of certain mushrooms. Just reading the titles of the research papers gives you clues to what’s possible. Some of the papers, or at least the abstracts, can be found online if you search on the title.
• Dr. Weil has a great article on mushrooms for breast cancer at http://www.drweil.com/health-wellness/body-mind-spirit/cancer/best-bet-for-breast-cancer-survivors/
• This paper at the National Institute of Health cites 78 studies about immune boosting effects in breast cancer patients who were administered Turkey Tail fungus.

• Links to collections of great articles:

  http://www.fungi.com/blog-archive/tag/Articles+by+Paul+Stamets.html
  http://www.drweil.com/videos-features/
  http://www.drweilonhealthyaging.com/hya/ecs/a/home_ns.html

• Below is a photo of Paul Stamets’ chart that I love from one of his older Fungi Perfecti catalogs.  It is an excellent overview of mushrooms that fight common conditions.  You will have to do a cross reference to look up each mushroom’s name, but I’ve summarized below some of the most potent and easily available ones’ common names. I use the circled ones together in my own tea mix.  You can buy these online in dry form, either whole or powdered.

Le = Lentinula edodes = Shiitake mushroom – available in grocery store. I cut off the stems before using the caps in cooking. Trim off any sawdust on the ends, then put them on a dish and let them dry. Then whiz the dried stems up in a strong blender like a Vitamix. The stems have the most dense tissue.  I’m not sure if there’s been studies of the medicinal strength of cap or stem, but I use both parts.

Gf = Grifola Frondosa = Maitake. Available online and occasionally in the grocery store.  A kind of conch mushroom, a bit tough unless powdered. I buy it pre-powdered.

Gl – Ganoderma lucidium = Reishi or Lingzhi mushroom. A potent favorite of mine. A less potent version of this grows around here on pines and hemlocks (Ganoderma oregonsis I think.) It keeps growing very slowly from the cream colored edge, rather than appearing new each year.  Not a directly edible mushroom in cooking because it is so tough, but can be cultivated or purchased online in dried, powdered form, for example,http://www.sunburstsuperfoods.com/organic-reishi-mushroom-powder/.

Cs = Cordyceps sinensis = caterpillar mushroom. Imported from China and well respected there. Weird but clearly powerful remedy, based on the chart

above and research.  https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ophiocordyceps_sinensis

I haven’t had the gastronomic strength to use Cordyceps yet, even in powdered form. The picture says it all – it’s host is a caterpillar, that becomes a part of the fungus. Brings to mind Anthony Bourdain.  But if I ever got real sick you bet I’d use it. Also see Dr. Weil: http://www.drweil.com/vitamins-supplements-herbs/herbs/cordyceps/

Po = Pleurotus ostreatus = oyster mushroom in different colors (strains) – often available in the grocery store. They taste faintly like fresh buttered fish when sauted.  To try to grow them on your own property, whiz a fresh oyster mushroom up in the blender with water, particularly the dense stem base where there’s a fuzzy bit starting to regrow (but not spoiling,) and sprinkle it around on fairly fresh logs that are starting to break down, maybe a year since cutting and exhibiting existing fungus growth…or on a wet bale of straw laid in damp, partial shade, you may get some oyster mushrooms the next year, depending on conditions. A bit haphazard but sometimes it works.  Once it takes hold, this is one of the most easy to grow mushrooms so you might find it spreading.

Tv = Trametes Versicolor = Turkey Tail fungus, very common in northern New York woods where I live.  They pop out each year in the fall, after things cool off and it rains, their dry, tough, fan-like forms overlapping on downed logs like lovely frilly skirts on dancing girls.  When fresh, they are a strikingly beautiful rich range of striped blue-greys, creams, tans, and browns, gradually turning white and (presumably) losing potency as they weather.   Available online in dried forms.

Search both Stamets’ and Dr. Weil’s sites, and elsewhere on the web for those you are interested in.

Administration

You can take powdered mushrooms as tinctures, dry in capsules, as a tea, or in food.

• Extracts: The active polysaccharides are most concentrated through extract tinctures (either purchased commercially, or made at home by steeping or simmering dry or fresh mushroom powder in ethanol like Everclear for a few weeks.
• You can purchase pre-made, or make your own capsules with the dried mushroom.  If you buy them pre-made, check the ingredients to make sure you’re not getting fillers added. Sometimes these mushrooms are added to other herbal immune boosters and various herbal treatments (in unknown proportions) to make a blended proprietary mix.
• Tea: simmer slowly on the stove or in a crock pot for several hours to let it extract fully, and drink 1-3 times a day, straining or leaving the dregs behind.  At Stamets’ seminar, he told us he and his family make and drink it daily.
• Soup: I make mine more or less like a light chicken broth strength (about a teaspoon of mushroom per cup or two of water,) and add salt to taste. I’ll often also add mushroom powder to homemade soups.

Dosage

I’d recommending following experimental dosage in successful studies: check the research papers available.  (Many more studies are available in bibliographies of related books.)  These are edible, although dry mushrooms, so think about the size of a typical side dish of mushrooms, and then estimate roughly a third to a quarter of the volume for dried, for a maximum dosage (e.g. roughly 1-2 tablespoons.)  That is moderate, and well above the dosage being given for research purposes. No side effects were noted at these doses other than possible allergic reactions. Many of these mushrooms are known for increasing white blood cell activity and otherwise stimulating the immune system.

Set realistic expectations if you would like to try these.  If you have a dysfunctional immune system or allergies, start with small doses and monitor effects, and increase as you find good results, to where there seems to be no difference or adverse effect.

Serious disease is caused by an imbalance from a combination of diet, stress, and environment factors that have been with you for a long time.  Medicinal mushrooms are usually part of a larger naturopathic treatment plan involving major lifestyle changes.

Though effective, their use requires patience and persistence.  These are gentler than commercial drugs, creating a balanced condition that allows the body to heal itself.  Rather than a standard week long or ten day daily intensive dose, improvement will occur more gradually over weeks or months, depending on the severity of the disease.  The good news is they typically do only good: few people experience any negative side effects.

Purchase links

Check search engines on the individual mushrooms you want to target. Use the chart above for the goals you want to achieve. You can mix them together without any problems. The ones below I just picked up quickly.  There are many others, you’ll want to shop around.

• See Stamets’ site http://www.fungi.com – has extracts, teas, etc.
• Also Weil: http://www.drweilproducts.com has vitamins, healthy foods, etc. He talks about mushrooms and is an avid mushroom hunter but doesn’t seem to sell them.
• Here’s a sample pack from a place that sells a whole range of medicinal mushrooms: http://nootropicsdepot.com/whole-fruiting-body-medicinal-mushroom-extract-sample-pack/