9 Reishi mushroom proven Benefits (Cancer treatment?)

Reishi mushroom Benefits list

Reishi mushrooms have been used for hundreds of years in Asian medicine for the following benefits:

Antioxidant (slows down aging)
Boosts the immune system

Builds strength and stamina
Treats depression
Adaptogen (reduces stress)

Reduces anxiety
Improves the body’s healing process
Promotes gut health

Prevents dehydration when taken as a tea

Reishi mushroom also has benefits for health conditions such as:

Anti-viral (HIV/AIDS, HPV, genital herpes, cold sores, flu, influenza, swine flu, avian flu)

Anti-bacterial (Bacillus pneumonia, staphylococci, streptococci bacteria, some mushroom poisonings)
Anti-allergic
Respiratory problems (chronic bronchitis, bronchial asthmatics, sinus problems)

anti-cancer (breast, prostate, colon or rectum and cancer support during chemotherapy)
Heart disease (high blood pressure, high cholesterol, blood clots, myocardial infarction, and angina)
Stomach ulcers & chronic hepatitis

Addictions (smoking, alcohol dependence)
Diabetes
Liver or kidney disease

Polycystic ovarian syndrome
Altitude sickness
Symptoms in the urinary tract in men

Chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS)
Paranoia
Insomnia

Seizures
Pain during and after a shingles outbreak

In the video below, Dr. Gus explains the medicinal properties, benefits, and uses of Reishi and how you can use it to treat your specific health condition.

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Can you use Reishi (Ganoderma Lucidum) in Cancer Treatment?

You can use Reishi in Cancer treatment because it contains beta-glucans polysaccharides that boost the immune system, which helps with the following effects:

Can you use Reishi mushrooms for Breast Cancer?

Reishi mushrooms can be used for breast cancer because they have anti-tumor effects from compounds that target various signaling pathways simultaneously. Patients that received Reishi along with cancer treatment reported:

Reduced anxiety
Reduced depression
Increased quality of life

Study Information

Title: Ginseng and Ganoderma lucidum use after breast cancer diagnosis and quality of life: a report from the Shanghai Breast Cancer Survival Study
Length: 36 months

Subject Information

Number of subjects: 4149
Health condition: breast cancer

Method used

Ginseng use was assessed at 6-, 18-, and 36-month post-diagnosis surveys
G. lucidum use was assessed at the 6- and 36-month surveys.

QOL was evaluated at the 6- and 36-month surveys.

Results

At 6 months post-diagnosis, 14.2% of participants reported regular use of ginseng and 58.8% reported use of G. lucidum.

We found no significant associations between ginseng use at 6, 18, and 36 months post-diagnosis and participants’ total QOL score or individual scores for psychological, physical, or social well-being.
Post-diagnosis G. lucidum use was positively associated with social well-being, but was inversely associated with physical well-being with a dose-response pattern observed for cumulative number of times of use

Conclusions

We found no evidence that post-diagnosis ginseng use improved the QOL of breast cancer survivors. Post-diagnosis G. lucidum use was associated with better social well-being scores, but poorer physical well-being scores.

Can you use Reishi mushrooms for Lung Cancer?

Studies show that Reishi may help strengthen the immune system for lung cancer. Patients that received Reishi along with cancer treatment reported:

Increased lymphocyte count (cancer-fighting immune cells)

Increased natural killer cell activity
Maintains quality of life

Study Information

Title: Preliminary Efficacy and Safety of Reishi & Privet Formula on Quality of Life Among Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer Patients Undergoing Chemotherapy: A Randomized Placebo-Controlled Trial
Length: 6 weeks

Subject Information

Age group: 59
Number of subjects: 82
Health condition: non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC)

Method used

Adults with NSCLC scheduled to receive chemotherapy were randomly assigned (3:1 ratio) to receive oral RPF (3.36 g/day) or placebo daily for 6 weeks.
The main outcome was the Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy-Lung (FACT-L).

We evaluated RPF’s safety profile using the Common Terminology Criteria for Adverse Events and assessed changes in outcome measures from baseline to weeks 3 and 6 using a linear mixed effects model.

Results

Compared with the placebo group, the RPF group had nonstatistically significant higher quality of life over 2 cycles of chemotherapy.

The RPF group was associated with a nonsignificant better general health and emotional well-being than the placebo group.
Adverse events rates did not differ between groups.

Conclusions

This study demonstrated preliminary safety and suggests a promising trend in RPF’s effect on maintaining quality of life and emotional well-being among NSCLC patients undergoing chemotherapy.
Future adequately powered randomized-controlled trials are needed to verify the efficacy and safety of RPF in cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy.

Can you use Reishi mushrooms for Pancreatic Cancer?

A study found that a submerged fermentation broth cultivated on malt extract, and alcohol/water extracts of the fruiting body of Reishi mushrooms can inhibit pancreatic cancer cells.

Study Information

Title: Comparative Study on Bioactivities from Lingzhi or Reishi Medicinal Mushroom, Ganoderma lucidum (Agaricomycetes), Gives an Insight into the Fermentation Broth Showing Greater Antioxidative Activities

Method used

The present study was to perform submerged fermentation of G. lucidum and compare the bioactivities of G. lucidum submerged fermentation broth and fruiting body extract.
After the extraction and submerged fermentation methods were optimized, the optimum conditions for extraction were determined as ethanol extraction at 80°C with a solid-to-liquid ratio of 1:30, and those for submerged fermentation were cultivation on malt extract medium for 6 days at 30°C.

Results

Under the optimum conditions, the antioxidative activity and tyrosinase inhibition rate of the fermentation broth were 1.2-4.1 fold higher than those of the ethanol extract.
Cytotoxicity analysis showed that the ethanol and water extracts and the fermentation broth effectively inhibited pancreatic cancer cells and prostate cancer cells, with much smaller effect on nontumor human embryonic kidney (HEK293T).

Conclusions

These results demonstrate that the submerged fermentation could improve the utilization value of G. lucidum and the fermentation broth can be used as an antioxidant additive applied in food, drugs, and cosmetics

Can you use Reishi mushrooms for Liver Cancer?

Submerged fermentation of Reishi mushrooms can be used for liver cancer because its polysaccharides show antitumor activity that can inhibit human liver cancer cells.

Study Information

Title: The polysaccharides from Ganoderma lucidum: Are they always inhibitors on human hepatocarcinoma cells?

Method used

The antitumor activity of intracellular polysaccharides from submerged fermentation of Ganoderma lucidum was investigated focusing on the inhibition on human liver cancer cells.

Results

The polysaccharides inhibited human hepatocarcinoma cell HepG2 during earlier phase with lower dosage but obviously became less functional in later phase regardless of the dosage applied.
However, apoptosis of the drugged HepG2 cells appeared in later incubation phase with high dosage, and the apoptosis could be enhanced by supplemental dose of the intracellular polysaccharides.

Nevertheless, the intracellular polysaccharides inhibited other human hepatocarcinoma cells such as BEL-7402 and Huh-7 but luckily stimulated human normal liver cell L02 only in a positive dose- and time-dependent manner; so did the sulfated extracellular polysaccharides when it inhibited HepG2 and L02 cells.
However, the toxicity of sulfated extracellular polysaccharides to L02 cells can be eliminated by the intracellular polysaccharides.

Can you use Reishi mushrooms for Prostate Cancer?

Reishi mushrooms can reduce DHT levels in the prostate, this helps stop prostate growth and lowers the risk of prostate cancer in older men.

Do Reishi mushrooms have benefits for the Skin?

Reishi mushrooms have the following benefits for the Skin:

Antioxidant (slows down aging, prevents UV damage)
Anti-Inflammatory (reduces redness, puffiness, and irritation)

Hydration (moisturizer, reduces lines, repairs and renews skin)
Adaptogen (reduces stress on the skin)
Skin lightening (fades scars, reduces discoloration and dark spots)

Skin support (increases elasticity, firmness, health, and appearance)
Anti-bacterial (detoxification (reduce bacteria on the skin)

Do Reishi mushrooms have benefits for Hair?

Reishi mushrooms have the following benefits for Hair:

Antioxidant (prevents damage from free radicals to hair)
Adaptogen (reduces hair loss due to stress)
Anti-inflammatory (protects fragile hair)

Improves blood circulation in the scalp (promotes hair growth and strength)
Inhibits testosterone (reduces 5-alpha reductase and prevents male pattern baldness)
Anti-bacterial (prevents hair follicles from becoming blocked or clogged)

Boosts the immune system (prevents baldness caused by the autoimmune disease Alopecia Areata)

Study Information

Title: Anti-androgenic activities of Ganoderma lucidum

Method used

The inhibitory effects of methanol extracts of 19 edible and medicinal mushrooms on 5alpha-reductase activity were examined.

Results

The extract of Ganoderma lucidum Fr. Krast (Ganodermataceae) showed the strongest 5alpha-reductase inhibitory activity.

Can you use Reishi mushrooms for Weight loss?

Reishi mushrooms can help with weight loss due to their prebiotic properties. A study on mice found the following benefits:

Contains fiber (feeds good bacteria and suppresses bad bacteria in the intestine)

Tightening of leaky guts (reduces inflammation and insulin resistance)
Decreases fat deposits in the body
Can reduce overeating caused by anxiety or stress

While these effects have been tested only in mice, Reishi mushrooms show potential for weight loss in humans.

Study Information

Title: Ganoderma lucidum reduces obesity in mice by modulating the composition of the gut microbiota

Method used

Here, we show that a water extract of Ganoderma lucidum mycelium (WEGL) reduces:

Bodyweight

Inflammation
Insulin resistance

in mice fed a high-fat diet (HFD).

Results

Our data indicate that WEGL:

reverses HFD-induced gut dysbiosis

maintains intestinal barrier integrity
reduces metabolic endotoxemia

The anti-obesity and microbiota-modulating effects are transmissible from WEGL-treated mice to HFD-fed mice. We further show that high molecular weight polysaccharides isolated from the WEGL extract produce similar anti-obesity and microbiota-modulating effects.

Conclusions

Our results indicate that G. lucidum and its high molecular weight polysaccharides may be used as prebiotic agents to prevent gut dysbiosis and obesity-related metabolic disorders in obese individuals.

How to use Reishi mushroom powder?

For Reishi mushroom dried extract or powder, the dose is approximately 10 times less than whole mushrooms.

The Pharmacopoeia of the People’s Republic of China recommends 6 to 12 g daily.
Traditional practitioners recommend 0.5 to 1 g daily, 2 to 5 g daily for chronic illness, and
up to 15 g extract daily for serious illness.

Ganopoly (a Reishi extract): up to 5.4 g daily (equivalent to 81 g of the fruiting body) for 12 weeks.

For regular health maintenance: 1 to 6 grams daily.
For cancer treatment: 9 to 15 grams daily.

How long does it take for Reishi mushrooms to work?

Since it’s not an active medication, it may take Reishi between 10 to 14 days to work, but you may feel its effects in a shorter time. The amount of time it takes for Reishi mushrooms to work also depends on their intended use:

Energy, reduced anxiety, better sleep: 2 weeks
Reduced fatigue and improved well-being: 4 to 8 weeks

Boost the immune system: 6 weeks
Men with lower urinary tract symptoms: 12 weeks
Increase of good cholesterol (HDL) and decrease of triglycerides: 12 weeks
Cancer support: 12 weeks

When to take Reishi mushrooms?

When to take Reishi Mushrooms will depend on your goal:

For sleep: in the evening before bed time (after dinner, around 8 pm)
For immunity: in the morning on an empty stomach (before traveling to a populated area, or during cold weather)

What are the Side Effects of Reishi mushroom powder?

Reported side effects from Reishi mushrooms are minimal and include:

Dizziness
Dry or itchy mouth, throat, and nose
Skin irritation or rash (from Reishi wine)
Allergies (from Reishi spores)
Upset stomach
Nosebleed
Bone pain
Bloody stools
Diarrhea
Constipation
Nausea
Insomnia
Liver toxicity

Reishi mushrooms can cause side effects in the following groups of people:

Pregnant or breastfeeding
People with blood disorders
People undergoing surgery
People with low blood pressure

However, some Reishi mushroom side effects are still unknown due to the limited number of studies in humans.

Can Reishi mushrooms cause Liver toxicity?

Reishi mushrooms can cause liver toxicity in powdered form if taken for more than 1 month.
In whole or dried extract form, Reishi mushrooms may be safe for the liver for up to 1 year (according to the Susan G. Komen Foundation).

One study shows 2 patients who consumed boiled Reishi mushroom tea without any liver damage. 2 months after switching to powdered form, they suffered from liver toxicity. However, it is not known for certain if Reishi mushrooms were responsible for the liver damage or if there were other problems with the powdered extract.

Where do Reishi mushrooms grow?

Reishi mushrooms grow on the sides of dead or dying hardwood trees (with the exception of the species Ganoderma Tsugae which grows on eastern Hemlock or other conifers).

Oak
Elm
Beech
Maple

Reishi mushrooms grow closer to the ground on:

Stumps
Fallen logs
At the base of living trees
Shallow underground tree roots

Reishi mushrooms grow in forests of:

Tropical regions of Asia (China)
Southern Europe
North America (Southwest United States)
South America
Australia

Does Reishi have look-alikes?

The most common Reishi look-alike is the Red belted conk (Fomitopsis pinicola). It has concentric rings with a red center that fades into white edges. You can confirm you have a real Reishi if:

You scratch the pore side underneath and it bruises (a red belted conk will not bruise).
The spore print is dark brown (a red belted conk has a white spore print)

There are no poisonous Reishi look-alikes.

Sources

This article makes use of information from the U.S. National Library of Medicine under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

9 Reishi mushroom proven Benefits (Cancer treatment?)