Do you really understand Reishi mushroom, which has been mysterious and miraculous to many people from ancient times to the present?

Reishi mushroom in ancient books 

Reishi mushroom was first recorded in Shen Nong Materia Medica, which stated that Ganoderma sinense ”prolongs life by lightening the body and preventing aging” while Ganoderma lucidum ”removes pathogenic factors congealing in the chest, benefits the heart qi, tonifies and replenishes middle qi, enhances wisdom, prevents forgetfulness, and prolongs life by lightening the body and preventing aging if consumed for a long time.”

Modern pharmacological research on Reishi mushroom

Why does Reishi mushroom have so many medicinal functions? In recent years, modern research has proven that Ganoderma lucidum and its active ingredients have a wide range of pharmacological effects:

1. Immunomodulatory effect

Ganoderma lucidum has the function of enhancing non-specific immunity: promoting the maturation, differentiation and antigen presentation of dendritic cells, and enhancing the functions of mononuclear macrophages and natural killer cells. Ganoderma lucidum also has the function of enhancing specific immunity: promoting the proliferation of B and T-lymphocytes and the production of antibodies and cytokines.

2. Anti-tumor effect

Ganoderma lucidum inhibits the growth of transplanted tumors in mice mainly by enhancing anti-tumor immunity, inhibiting tumor angiogenesis, and inhibiting tumor immune escape.

3. Sedative hypnotic effect, analgesic effect

Ganoderma lucidum can be effective for the prevention and treatment of disease models such as Alzheimer’s disease and Parkinson’s disease through its anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidant mechanisms. It can attenuate neurodegeneration, improve learning and memory abilities, promote nerve regeneration, reduce cerebral ischemia, and inhibit epileptic seizures.

4. Antitussive, antiasthmatic, anti-inflammatory and anti-allergic effects

Ganoderma lucidum can prevent and treat allergic rhinitis, chronic bronchitis, allergic tracheoalveolitis and airway hyperresponsiveness in animal models through immune regulation and anti-inflammatory mechanisms.

5. The effect of lowering blood pressure, regulating blood fat and protecting the heart

Ganoderma lucidum can lower blood pressure, reduce serum total cholesterol and low-density lipoprotein, increase high-density lipoprotein, and protect vascular endothelial cells.

6. The effect of regulating endocrine and remitting diabetes

Ganoderma lucidum can reduce blood sugar in animal models of diabetes, alleviate islet damage, promote insulin secretion, and attenuate diabetic complications such as diabetic nephropathy, cardiomyopathy and retinopathy.

7. The effect of protecting gastric mucosa and preventing liver damage

Ganoderma lucidum can be used to treat gastric ulcers caused by alcohol, drugs, stress, pyloric ligation and other inducements. Ganoderma lucidum can inhibit the inflammation of the digestive tract induced by drugs and fungal infections, improve the immune function of the intestinal mucosa, and correct the imbalance of intestinal flora.

8. The effect of preventing acute kidney injury and chronic kidney disease

Ganoderma lucidum has preventive and therapeutic effects on animal models of urinary system diseases such as acute kidney injury, diabetic nephropathy, renal fibrosis, and urinary system tumors.

9. Anti-aging effect

Ganoderma lucidum can improve the immune function weakened by aging. Ganoderma lucidum can resist oxidation and scavenge free radicals, protect against the oxidative stress damage of the heart, brain, liver, spleen, skin and other organs and tissues caused by aging, and improve learning and memory impairments caused by aging.

10. Antiviral effect

By inhibiting viral adsorption and penetration, Ganoderma lucidum inhibits the activation of early viral antigens, inhibits the activity of viral reverse transcriptase and protease, hinders viral DNA or RNA replication and viral protein synthesis, and has antiviral effects on influenza virus, herpes virus and hepatitis B virus.

Note: The above content is excerpted from P11-P15 of the book “The Pharmacology and Clinical Practice of Ganoderma lucidum” edited by Lin Zhibin and Yang Baoxue and published by Peking University Medical Press.

Reishi mushroom in modern pharmacopoeia

The 2000 edition of The Pharmacopoeia of the People’s Republic of China included the dried fruiting bodies of Ganoderma lucidum and Ganoderma sinense as new Chinese medicinal materials, officially recognizing the medicinal value of Ganoderma.

In 2008, China and the United States formally signed the Memorandum of Understanding on Pharmacopoeia Work, establishing the common goal of cooperation between the two parties – to ensure the quality and safety of public medication and to promote the healthy development of the pharmaceutical industry. At present, it has been determined that Ganoderma lucidum, Andrographis paniculata, Centella asiatica, Cinnamon, and Artemisia annua are included in the Dietary Supplements Compendium (DSC).

Chinese Anticancer Traditional Chinese Medicine Dictionary also records that wild Ganoderma Atrum has the functions of supplementing the liver and kidney, strengthening sinew and bone, quieting the spirit and fortifying the stomach, and boosting the immune system.

The 2015 edition of Chinese Pharmacopoeia points out that Ganoderma lucidum is mild-natured, enters the heart, lung, liver, and kidney channels, has the effects of supplementing qi and quieting the spirit, suppressing cough and calming panting, and is used to treat symptoms such as disquieted heart spirit, insomnia, palpitations, lung deficiency cough and panting, deficiency-taxation and shortness of breath, and no thought of food and drink.

Ganoderma lucidum has so many wonderful uses. Have you ever seen what a real organic Ganoderma looks like?

As the hometown of authentic Ganoderma, the Wuyi Mountains are rich in species resources. At the source of the three rivers in Wuyi Mountains, GanoHerb has always insisted on one Duanwood for one Reishi mushroom, artificial weeding, and irrigation with fresh mountain spring water on its self-built organic Reishi plantation.

The baby Reishi here has gradually grown up. This summer, come to the world of Reishi and explore the mysterious traces of this magic herb.