Organic mushrooms are tasty and nutritious, but did you know that you don’t need to eat mushrooms fresh to add them to your diet? Many of our clients primarily purchase dried, powdered mushrooms to use as a dietary supplement. These mushrooms are known as a functional food because they provide benefits beyond nutrition.
Our powdered Chaga and Lion’s Mane mushrooms have huge potential as dietary supplements – scientists are just beginning to research what many cultures have known for generations. Mushrooms may help support the immune system, reduce inflammation, encourage brain health, and even decrease the effects of aging.
Powdered Mushrooms: A Healthy Addition
Lion’s Mane and Chaga share traits that make them both a great addition to nearly anyone’s diet. They are full of antioxidants and other compounds that help the body repair itself and function at an optimal level. Each type of mushroom also has its own benefits that you may want to consider before you choose which one you’d like to try first.
Lion’s Mane is especially important for brain health. In fact, some studies suggest that this mushroom can actually regrow some of the nerve fibers in the brain! Lion’s Mane contains neurotrophic factors called hericenones and erinacines which can induce nerve growth factors essential for optimal brain function. If the efficacy of Lion’s Mane supplements are proven, patients with cognitive impairments such as Alzheimer’s, dementia, and MS may use these mushrooms to increase their cognitive function.
The Chaga mushroom has become a popular supplement recently due to its purported health benefits. Doctors, alternative medicine advocates, and researchers are all increasingly interested in this mushroom, and past studies have yielded some promising results. Chaga mushrooms help regulate the production of cytokines, proteins in the blood that play a vital role in stimulating white blood cells. This is crucial for a healthy immune system. They may also slow or reverse the visible signs of aging caused by oxidative stress.
Adding Powdered Mushrooms to Your Day
If you’d like to add powdered mushrooms to your diet, we have a few suggestions that are popular with our customers.
Lion’s Mane and Chaga powders are extremely versatile; you can use them in the same way you would use any other dietary supplement. The powders don’t have a prominent flavor, so they can be added to a sweet or savory meal. Sprinkle it over your morning meal, such as oatmeal or avocado toast. Or, if you’d prefer to take your daily dose of mushroom at lunch, you can mix some into a vinaigrette for your salads. At dinner time, homemade bone broths and soups can be extra nutritious with the addition of some Lion’s Mane or Chaga powder. You can even add a small amount of powder to baked goods and it shouldn’t affect the final product.
You may not have considered drinking mushrooms, but it’s a great way to fit them into your day! You can add a teaspoon of our mushroom powder to your morning coffee, protein shake, or tea to gain its benefits. If you would like to consume the Chaga on its own, you can also steep the powder in hot water as you would a tea. A bit of honey or sugar in this tea makes it a very healthy and enjoyable drink morning, noon, or night! For added creaminess, you can also turn your Chaga tea into a latte.
Do you take your daily “dose” of powdered mushrooms in a unique way? We’d love to hear about it! Share your favorite powdered mushroom recipes with us on Facebook or Instagram.