If you make a purchase after clicking on links within this article, Lee Enterprises may earn affiliate commissions. The news and editorial departments had no role in the creation or display of this content.
When it comes to consuming foods to support the brain's ability to stay healthy and function correctly, there may be no better choice than eating mushrooms. A staple of traditional Chinese medicine for centuries, medicinal mushrooms have long been thought to boost brain health and cognitive function.
While more laboratory tests are needed to shed light on exactly how they do this, there may be little doubt that medicinal mushrooms may help you soar up the cognitive function scale in no time at all. The only issue is, with so many different mushroom species out there, it can be very hard to work out which one to use.
People are also reading…
Then there is the issue of how to consume an edible mushroom for its medicinal qualities. While you can just eat fresh mushrooms whole or put them in stir-fries, you may need to consume a large number of the fruiting bodies of most mushroom species, which makes using a supplement a potentially easier, cheaper option.
That is why reviewers for this article have made the following guide to the best medicinal mushrooms for brain health. They will give you all of the information to help you work out which mushroom species may be right for you, and make picking a supplement that may offer all of the health benefits you are seeking as fast and easy as possible.
The 7 Best Mushroom Dietary Supplements For Supporting Brain Health
Best Gummies – Elm and Rye
Best Capsules – Nootrum
Best Powder – Elm and Rye
Best Coffee – Nootrum
Runners Up – Nutriflair, Stonehenge, Genius, Double Wood
Elm & Rye Mushroom Complex – The Best Mushroom Gummies To Boost Brain Health
Elm & Rye Mushroom Complex is quite a unique mushroom supplement as it is available in a choice of traditional capsules, mushroom gummies, and even a coffee creamer. This makes it a perfect option for people who have issues or simply do not like swallowing regular pills.
The Elm & Rye Mushroom Complex gummies are made from a selection of purportedly high quality, lab tested mushrooms that reviewers for this piece have already encountered multiple times. They consist of maitake mushrooms, lion's mane mushrooms, reishi mushrooms, cordyceps mushrooms, and chaga mushrooms.
Capable of potentially doing everything from boosting brain health and promoting neurite outgrowth to combatting Alzheimer's disease, Elm & Rye Mushroom Complex may support your cognitive health and functions and overall well-being, while only having to take one gummy each day also may make it very enjoyable to use.
That all said you do get slightly better dosing in the capsules and powder as you’d expect.
Despite this though, if you want to make the most of the beneficial effects that mushroom supplements may offer but have issues swallowing pills or capsules or just looking for a tasty alternative, Elm & Rye Mushroom Complex gummies may be one of the best options on the market for you to try.
Pros
- A gummy or a coffee creamer may be a good choice ideal for people who can't or don't like swallowing traditional pills or capsules
- Uses a good range of mushrooms, such as lion's mane, that may benefit your physical and mental health and functions
Cons
- One of the more expensive mushroom supplements on the market
- A proprietary blend may mask the dosages of all the ingredients, including the lion's mane extract
Nootrum Mushrooms – The Best Mushroom Supplement For Improving Brain Health (Capsules)
Nootrum Mushrooms is a mushroom supplement made with potent doses of ten different medicinal mushroom extracts. This may make it capable of enhancing cognitive function, boosting your overall brain health, and providing a variety of other mental and physical health benefits, like possibly improving memory.
Nootrum Mushrooms contains cordyceps sinensis powder, reishi mushroom extract, shiitake mushroom extract, lion's mane mushroom extract, and a blend of maitake mushroom, turkey tail mushroom, chaga mushroom, royal sun agaricus mushroom, white button mushroom, and black fungus extracts.
Lion's mane mushrooms may boost the immune system and brain health and functions, neurite outgrowth, blood flow to the brain, nerve growth factor, the growth of brain cells and nerve cells, and peripheral nerve regeneration, and reduce inflammation and blood pressure, sugar, lipid, and cholesterol levels (1). And most importantly Nootrum may standardize for the erinacines that give lion’s mane its NGF boosting effects.
Cordyceps mushroom may be used for promoting mental clarity, a healthy immune system, brain, heart and testicles, and better cognitive function, physical performance and brain cell growth, and combatting the signs of aging, inflammation, mental decline, arthritis, diabetes, diarrhoea, headaches and tumours (2). As you’ve guessed they may do the same with the cordycepin compound.
Reishi mushroom may support brain health and the urinary tract and immune system, boost your sleep quality, strength and stamina, reduce stress, anxiety, blood sugar and blood pressure levels and your mood, and prevent or treat metabolic syndrome, fatigue, and certain other health conditions (3).
Shiitake mushrooms are rich in vitamin d and b vitamins and may offer many potential health benefits for the mind and body. They may improve immune system, heart and brain health and functions, energy levels, and ability to lose weight, and help reduce inflammation and combat some chronic diseases (4).
Maitake mushrooms are high in antioxidants, beta glucans, minerals and vitamins. They may reduce blood sugar, blood pressure and cholesterol levels, boost immune function, brain health and cognitive function, and treat a number of the most severe diseases, illnesses and health conditions (5).
The turkey tail mushroom is a type of polypore mushroom found worldwide that is full of antioxidants and polysaccharide k. It may improve immune system and gut health, cognitive function, digestion, and exercise performance, reduce inflammation and blood sugar levels, and help combat type 2 diabetes (6).
The chaga mushroom is a fungus found on birch trees and it is high in melanin and various polyphenols, triterpenoids, and polysaccharides. It may boost your gut health and immune functions, reduce blood sugar and cholesterol levels, and prevent or combat cell mutation, fatigue and many chronic illnesses (7).
The royal sun agaricus mushroom may reduce stress and hunger cravings, prevent mood swings, allergic reactions and physical weakness, boost immune and liver health and functions, reduce blood sugar and cholesterol levels, and treat alopecia, arthritis and heart, digestive and other chronic health issues (8).
White button mushrooms may prevent oxidative stress and damage, reduce inflammation, boost your gut and immune health and functions, improve the production of white blood cells, treat or prevent a range of chronic health conditions, protect the prostate, and accelerate the growth of lean muscle (9).
Black fungus extract is made from medicinal mushrooms high in probiotics, antioxidants and fibre. It may boost gut, liver and brain health and functions, reduce your cholesterol levels, protect your cells from free radicals and oxidative damage, and improve blood flow to the brain and your circulation (10).
By combining potent doses of so many clinically proven 20:1 extracts of medicinal mushrooms with anti-inflammatory properties, Nootrum Mushrooms may safely and effectively reduce oxidative stress, boost immunity, and support cognitive function and brain health from virtually every angle. The also may make the best mushroom coffee right now.
Add in the fact that it is also very reasonably priced and may affect the part of the brain responsible for things like the growth of brain cells and nerve cells, and Nootrum Mushrooms may be the perfect choice for anyone who might be interested in consuming mushrooms to support their nervous system and brain health.
Pros
- Uses a wide range of mushroom species including lion's mane mushrooms that may boost your mental and physical health
- All of the active compounds used may be high quality, extremely potent 10:1 extracts
- Has no artificial flavors and appears to use only organic medicinal mushrooms
- Reasonably priced
Cons
- As one of the newer mushroom supplements on the market, reviews may be limited
- Has to be bought direct from the official Nootrum website
Nutriflair Premium Mushroom Complex – The Best Mushroom Supplement With Reishi Mushroom
Nutriflair Premium Mushroom Complex is a vegan-friendly, GMO-free medicinal mushroom supplement intended to enhance memory, focus, immunity, mental clarity, vitality and your overall health, by combining lion's mane extract with the extracts from the fruiting bodies of nine other mushrooms.
Its formula contains lion's mane mushroom (hericium erinaceus), cordyceps mushroom, reishi mushroom, chaga mushroom, maitake mushroom, turkey tail mushroom, shiitake mushroom, enoki mushroom, agaricus mushroom and oyster mushroom extracts.
Agaricus, cordyceps, chaga, maitake, reishi, shiitake, turkey tail, and lion's mane mushrooms have all been seen in the other supplements in various dosages, and they may offer all of the same body and brain health benefits to some extent.
Enoki mushrooms are rich in polysaccharides, proteins and antibacterial, antiviral and anti inflammatory compounds, as well as other nutrients. They may aid gut, heart and brain health and functions, weight loss, and immunity, reduce inflammation, and combat chronic allergies, diseases and viruses (11).
Oyster mushrooms are unique, as they are a type of carnivorous fungus that eats insects and absorbs many of the bioactive compounds that they contain, to assimilate their potential antioxidant properties.
This is said to possibly give them the ability to improve your bone mineral density and vitamin d levels, prevent or treat anaemia, arthritis, osteoporosis and certain other health issues, regulate your cholesterol and blood pressure levels, and maybe boost your immune and brain health and functions and overall well being (12).
There may be a few limitations with Nutriflair Premium Mushroom Complex.
For starters, many of the proven medicinal mushrooms may be present in dosages that may be too low for some, with one such mushroom being the most beneficial in the formula, lion's mane mushroom (hericium erinaceus).
Two of the mushrooms, enoki mushrooms and oyster mushrooms, also may need more scientific evidence to conclusively prove that they are actually capable of reducing oxidative stress and benefitting the brain.
Despite these limited issues though, Nutriflair Premium Mushroom Complex may be one of the only supplements to use reishi, oyster and lion's mane mushrooms at the same time, all three of which appear to be reasonably dosed.
This may make it a good supplement for people who are may be looking to use this combination of mushrooms to boost their brain health, especially as it is also very reasonably priced.
Pros
- One of the only supplements to feature a potent dose of reishi, oyster and lion's mane mushrooms
- On the cheaper end of the spectrum for a supplement that contains lion's mane extract (hericium erinaceus)
- Vegan friendly and non GMO
Cons
- Some of its ingredients may be present in lower doses than you will find in other supplements, including lion's mane extract (hericium erinaceus)
- Some of the bioactive compounds may require more research to impact some users
Stonehenge Health Dynamic Mushrooms – The Best Mushroom Supplement With Lion's mane Mushroom
Stonehenge Health Dynamic Mushrooms is a supplement intended to provide antioxidant and immune system support and may improve your memory and focus. It is non GMO, vegetarian friendly, made in GMP certified facilities, and uses a formula that revolves around lion's mane extract.
In addition to the lion's mane extract, Stonehenge Health Dynamic Mushrooms also contains chaga mushroom 10:1 extract, maitake mushroom 4:1 extract, shiitake mushroom 4:1 extract, and reishi extract with 30% polysaccharides.
All of the medicinal mushrooms in Stonehenge Health Dynamic Mushrooms were present in Nootrum Mushrooms and they may again deliver all of the same benefits, only to potentially differing degrees, perhaps due to the different dosages used.
They may aid mental and neuronal health as they work to promote neurite outgrowth, quality sleep and fat loss, and boost energy levels, heart, gut, immune and brain health and functions, concentration, focus, blood flow to the brain, the growth of brain cells and blood vessels, nerve growth factor, memory, and your mood.
They may also combat anxiety, brain fog, cell mutation, fatigue, inflammation, stress, mild cognitive impairment or decline, high blood sugar, blood pressure and cholesterol levels, neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer's disease, and many other illnesses and chronic health conditions.
With the exception of lion's mane extract (hericium erinaceus), some of the mushrooms in the supplement may be present in dosages that may not work for some users.Â
That issue aside though, it may boast one of the most potent doses of lion's mane mushrooms that you will find in a mushroom supplement. That is why Stonehenge Health Dynamic Mushrooms may be one of the best options if you want to use lion's mane mushrooms to possibly keep your brain healthy and working.
Pros
- Boasts one of the most purportedly potent doses of lion's mane mushroom you will find in a mushroom supplement
- Uses a varied range of mushroom extracts that may benefit your brain and overall health in many ways
- May boost neurite outgrowth and nerve growth factors and combat or prevent Alzheimer's disease
Cons
- May not be as affordable as other mushroom supplements on the market
- Lion's mane mushroom may be the only ingredient present at optimum levels
Genius Mushrooms – The Best Budget Mushroom Supplement For Brain Health
Genius Mushrooms is a mushroom supplement intended to improve your mental clarity, immune function, ATP production, energy levels, memory, mood, oxygen utilization, aerobic capacity, and athletic endurance while being reasonably priced.
The Genius Mushrooms formula uses organic mushrooms that this review has already looked at, and it includes lion's mane mushrooms, cordyceps mushrooms, and reishi mushrooms.
These may boost brain, heart and testicle functions, performance and health, focus, clarity, immunity, mood, memory, concentration, physical performance, blood flow to the brain and brain cell and nerve growth, and treat mental decline, high blood pressure, Alzheimer's disease, tumours, diseases and inflammation.
Admittedly, Genius Mushrooms is not without its flaws, as everything except the lion's mane extract may be in a lower dose than is optimal, while the formula may also be far less diverse than the top mushroom supplements. That said, this may be expected when you are looking at budget supplements of any kind.
That is why, despite these issues and given the benefits that it may deliver, these reviewers feel that Genius Mushrooms may be one of the best mushroom supplements for people who may be looking to take advantage of the physical and mental health benefits that mushrooms can offer while shopping on a very tight budget.
Pros
- Uses a range of mushrooms that may enhance your mental and physical health, such as lion's mane
- The lion's mane extract may be present in its optimal dose
- 100 percent organic and appears reasonably priced
Cons
- May contain a small number of ingredients, which limit its impact for some users
- Everything except lion's mane extract may be present in a dose that is lower than optimal for some
- Cordyceps and reishi mushrooms may not produce optimal results in these dosages
Double Wood Supplements Reishi Mushroom Extract – The Best Brain Health Mushrooms For First-Time Users
Double Wood Supplements Reishi Mushroom Extract is a soy, gluten, and GMO-free, vegan-friendly mushroom supplement that is made in GMP-certified facilities using 1,000 mg of pure, high-quality reishi mushroom 4:1 extract, and boasts an extremely reasonable price tag.
The impressive dose of reishi mushrooms it contains may produce mental and physical health benefits that reishi mushrooms are known for to the potentially highest levels possible.
Admittedly, containing just a single ingredient may limit the range of health benefits it can offer, as reishi mushrooms may be at their most effective when used as part of a more diverse formula that combines them with other proven medicinal mushrooms, such as the lion's mane mushroom.
However, perhaps the most noteworthy aspect of this mushroom supplement is the 100 percent money-back guarantee it comes with. This may be unlike any other supplements the reviewers for this article have seen, so it makes it a supplement you may be able to buy and try without any risk.
That is why reviewers for this article still feel that Double Wood Supplements Reishi Mushroom Extract may be one of the best options for people who either only want to use reishi mushrooms or who are worried about taking mushroom supplements for the first time and want to try a product without any risk.
Pros
- Very reasonably priced
- Contains a very potent dose of reishi mushrooms
- Comes with a 100 percent money back guarantee
Cons
Not combining resihi extract with other ingredients like lion's mane mushrooms may limit the range of effects for some users
Final Thoughts On The Best Mushroom Supplement To Improve Your Overall Brain Function & Health
Using a medicinal mushroom supplement may be a very quick, easy and effective way to potentially boost your immune, nervous system and brain health and functions, and maybe even your overall well being. There are a range of these supplements that may do a good job, but the best option for most people may be Nootrum Mushrooms.
With a high dose of lion's mane mushroom powder and nine other 10:1 medicinal mushrooms, Nootrum Mushrooms may boost brain health and functions, nerve growth factors and neural growth, ease chronic inflammation and neurodegenerative diseases, and possibly even boost your overall health, all while being fairly priced.
If for any reason it does not sound like the right mushroom supplement for you, then one of the other options on this list may be. For everyone else though, it is highly recommended that you give Nootrum Mushrooms a try and see just how effectively it may boost your brain function and health for yourself.
Resources:
