Collection: Mushrooms

Each product serves a different function and one is extracted more extensively than the other, but it does not necessarily mean one is "better" than the other. Each serves a different function:

• Hot-water extract of Lion's Mane serves best for those looking to enhance the immune and digestive system. Containing rich amounts of polysaccharides, beta-glucans and alpha-glucans. (8:1 Concentration Ratio)
  
  
• Full Spectrum Ethanol extract of Lion's Mane stimulate the production of Nerve Growth Factor (NGF) and BDNF within the body, which are proteins that are largely responsible for the development, maintenance, repair and survival of nerve cells within the peripheral and central nervous systems. 

  The water soluble compounds in Lion’s Mane such as the polysaccharides and the beta-glucans we covered previously, are excellent for the immunological and gastrointestinal benefits, but they do not stimulate the production of NGF. For those seeking neurological and cognitive health benefits, a full spectrum alcohol (ethanol) extraction of Lion's Mane is mandatory in order to achieve its production. All of the different hericenones and erinacines (of which there are many), are either terpenes or terpene bound polyphenols, which means they have low to no solubility in water, but they are fully soluble in ethanol. These 2 components are directly responsible for stimulating NGF. (12:1 Concentration Ratio)

• 1:1 Powder are for those mushroom enthusiasts willing to create their own mushroom extracts at home. Mushroom powder is not an extract, and extraction procedures are mandatory in order to access the main active medicinal components in Lion's Mane. Examples include making a tea, tincture, or decoction of some kind.

What is the difference between 1:1 powder, hot-water extract, ethanol-extract, and dual extract?

• 1:1 powder: Mushroom powder is simply mushrooms that is dried and pulverized into a fine powder. No extraction procedure was done of any kind. This can be confusing since mushroom powder looks similar to mushroom extract powder, but there is a world of difference between these two forms of mushroom products. 

  Polysaccharides, which are water soluble, and Terpene compounds, which are ethanol soluble, are two of the main groups of components that we find in medicinal mushrooms. They have been studied extensively and it is these compounds that are understood to provide the bulk of the health benefits that are associated with medicinal mushrooms. These specifications of nutrients are used as a measurement of potency. The problem is that these nutrients are locked up behind the cell wall of fungi, and those cell walls are made of another polysaccharide called Chitin, which is the same tough structure that is found in the exoskeleton of insects, crustaceans and arachnids! Chitin is not water-soluble, so if we consume un-extracted mushroom powders, or if we eat raw mushrooms, we will be getting little to no benefit at all. This means if you were to buy 1:1 powder, YOU’RE GOING TO NEED TO EXTRACT THE POWDER YOURSELF. Chitin only denatures through exposure to heat. This means cooking it in some form or another is essential if we want to break down those cell walls and access the medicinal compounds we seek in mushrooms. 

• Hot-water extract: A hot water extract is exactly what it sounds like – using hot water to dissolve water-soluble ingredients from mushrooms. In this method, the raw material is heated in water at a temperature of about 80–175°C for a certain period of time. After the extraction is done, the remaining solid mushroom material is discarded, and the water is evaporated to leave behind an extract material. Hot water extracts are commonly used for preparing mushroom supplements because the main active ingredient in the vast majority of medicinal mushrooms – beta-glucans – are water-soluble.

• Ethanol extract: As the name suggests, an ethanol extract uses alcohol instead of water as the solvent. The most common type of alcohol used for this method is ethanol. Extraction with ethanol causes the alcohol-soluble compounds to separate from the mushroom material. Alcohol extracts are typically used to isolate terpenes (specifically, triterpenoids and diterpenoids), sterols, and flavonoids, which are the main non-water-soluble active compounds present in medicinal mushrooms.
• Dual extract: the material is first extracted with either hot water or alcohol, and then the remaining mushroom material is extracted again with the other method. Although the word “dual” sounds like it should lead to better results, dual extracts are not always necessary and can actually be detrimental because alcohol would cause some of the the beta-glucans to solidify and be filtered out of the liquid. Dual extract is best used for mushrooms that contain significant levels of both water-soluble and alcohol-soluble active ingredients, such as Chaga and Reishi.
  

What does "concentration ratio" mean? 

Extracts should have a concentration ratio to show its measure of potency. For example, a 10:1 ratio essentially means it has taken 10 kilos of mushrooms to produce 1 kilo of extract, making the product 10 times more concentrated and 10 times more potent than the raw whole mushroom. The higher the ratio, the more potent the extract will be.

 

Laboratory and Clinical Studies