The Health Benefits of Mushrooms

Mushrooms have been valued throughout the world as both a food and medicine for thousands of years. Throughout the world, many people enjoy hunting for wild mushrooms. Europeans have always appreciated the gastronomic value of wild mushroom. In Japan, pushcart vendors on the streets still sell medicinal mushrooms to the average citizen who uses them to maintain health and promote longevity. Some Japanese people have been said to travel hundreds of miles in order to collect wild mushrooms that only grow on very old plumb trees - such as the Reishi - renowned as a cure for cancer and degenerative diseases.

    When it comes to mushrooms, most Irish and British are rather ignorant. Many people have a distinct dislike, even a fear of fungi. The principle edible mushrooms most people know are the bland Agaricus Bisporus, or ‘button mushroom’ found in supermarkets. It has little flavor and negligible medicinal value compared with other wild species.

    Fungi have played an important role in Chinese culture for perhaps 7,000 years. A number of medicinal mushrooms, such as Ganoderna lucidum and Cordyceps are, along with Ginseng and Astragalus, considered to belong to the highest class of medicines which are said to impart strength, vigor and longevity.

    Ganoderna lucidum is without doubt, one of the most famous medicinal mushrooms. It is known as Ling Zhi in china and Reishi in Japan. It has been used for thousands of years to treat liver disease (such as hepatitis), nephritis (kidney inflammation), high blood pressure, arthritis, neurasthenia (tiredness and weakness of the body), insomnia, bronchitis, asthma and gastric ulcers. In the past, Reishi was very expensive, because it only grew in the wild, but cultivation techniques developed in the last 20 years have now made it accessible and affordable. Today, this king of fungi is used especially for age-related and degenerative conditions, such as cancer, and as an immune stimulant.

    In the last 20 years, Reishi has undergone a number of clinical studies with humans and is thought to be beneficial for a wide variety of disorders; of special note is Reishi’s action on the lungs and heart. In clinical studies conducted in China during the 1970’s over 2000 patients with chronic bronchitis were given a tablet form of Reishi. Within two weeks, 60-90% of the patients showed marked improvement. The older patients, especially seemed to benefit the most, and those with bronchial asthma, in particular, responded well.

    As for its action on the heart, Reishi has been reported to benefit patients with coronary heart disease and high blood, cholesterol. It also has been found to lower blood pressure.

    Another key action of Reishi, is found in its anti-allergic effects. It is very useful in treating asthma, rhinitis (hay fever), sinusitis all with an allergic element. It seems to act by helping the body to become less allergic to the collagen.

    The Japanese government has officially listed Reishi as and adjunct herb for cancer (Willard 1990)

    In my experience, it is especially suitable as a calming herb for people with anxiety, sleeplessness, on nervousness accompanied by adrenal weakness or general fatigue.

    The dosage of Reishi for general use is 2-3grams a day taken before food. It can be taken long-term without side-effects; in fact it can be taken for years in some cases, especially older people.

David Foley

MRCHM, MNIMH

Medical Herbalist