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MEDICINAL MUSHROOMS – GOING VIRAL
Mushrooms have been used as both food and medicine since antiquity. One of my favorite poems, discovered in an ancient Egyptian temple, illustrates this history: “Without leaves, without buds, without flowers, yet from fruit; as food, as tonic, as medicine: the entire creation is precious.” At a time when viral epidemics are inevitable and the current COVID-19 pandemic has presented in most of the world, antiviral therapies are possibly being investigated now more than ever before. This paper explores the use of medicinal mushrooms as antivirals in in vivo (human and animal) and in vitro (petri dish) experiments and how these experiments may inform us on the utilization of these fungi as antiviral therapies. Read More
LION’S MANE: A PSYCHOSOMATIC PSYCHOBIOTIC
I KNOW YOU IMMEDIATELY THINK OF THE BRAIN, BUT FOLLOW THE VAGUS NERVE FROM BRAIN TO GUT AND LET’S JUST STAY THERE FOR A WHILE… This mushroom is incredibly popular right now. Very hip. Very trendy. Also of grand popularity are afflictions of the stomach, intestines and… Read More
ERGOTHIONEINE: THE ELUSIVE AMINO ACID
Ergothioneine is a water soluble compound that is most abundant in Oyster mushrooms. There are transporters on different tissues in the body that are highly specific to ergothioneine. Ergothioneine is readily absorbed into the blood after consumption of mushrooms and stored in tissues for up to 1 month. In times of excessive oxidative stress, ergothioneine is taken up by those tissues and used as an antioxidant. Of note: there are transporters on the blood brain barrier and there is an association with low ergothioneine and age-related cognitive decline. In a world full of environmental toxins that are mostly impossible to escape, we might as well eat more mushrooms and get some extra protection. Read More