Lion's Mane
WHAT IS LION'SMANE
Also called Old Man's Beard, Hou Tou Gu, or by its Latin name Hericium erinaceus, Lion's Mane is a culinary and medicinal mushroom long used in the cornucopia of healing herbs and fungi of Chinese and Eastern medicines. Quite a large mushroom, it resembles a bulbous long hair beard when maturing. It grows on the trunks of dead hardwood trees and is rich in vitamins and minerals, including niacin, potassium, and much more.
In China, Japan, Korea, and India, it is used raw, cooked, dried or steeped into a tea.
Like all mushrooms, Lion's Mane is the fruiting body of a large and hidden mycelium that supports it.
In our Western world, there are a lot of diverging opinions about the veracity of Lion's mane therapeutical virtues. On one end some completely dismiss the empirical and historical evidence and affirm that the lack of systematic studies on humans invalidates such virtues. Other medical sites will use a lot of "could" and "might" when describing Lion's Mane's virtues and some sites will be absolutely affirmative about them.
The truth is that there are quite a lot of studies on Lion's mane but most are done on rats and there are not many done on humans. However, everybody conducting serious scientific research agrees that Lion's Mane presents non-negligible healing potential in several areas. Lion's Mane is known to be very rich in antioxidants and antioxidants are great taking care of our central nervous system aka our brain.
I added several links at the bottom of the page for those who want to learn further about lion's mane as a medicinal mushroom.
Lion's mane is safe for human consumption with very rare and mild side effects. However people with a mushroom allergy should not take it and those who are pregnant, are on blood thinner medicine or are diabetic should consult with their doctor before starting a course of Lion's mane.
MY OWM EXPERIENCE WITH LION'SMANE AND WHY I STARTED TO INFUSE IT INTO CHOCOLATE.
In September 2023, as i was driving my Uber cab, I got hit by another vehicle. My beautiful expensive car was destroyed and although I did not feel hurt right away I went home and soon could not move my right hand ( momentarily thank god) and I started to have a spliting headache. I was diagnosed with a concussion from a whiplash. Needless to say that I was not about or capable at the time to go back to work as a pro driver. For the first two months after my MVA, I increasingly had headaches, brain fog, difficulty focusing, and I was depressed. Physical therapy was doing its work but I was not happy about the mental fog and lack of focus. I knew about Lion's mane and a friend reminded me of its benefits. So I started to take Lion's mane every day, the same concentrated powder I put in my chocolate bars. After one week, I started to feel that my brain was kicking in second gear and brain fog and depression slowly receided. Continuing for the next few month at a dosage of 200mg /day helped a sturdy and full recovery. I am aware that the physical therapy I was undergoing at the time was a very important factor in my recovery but the said recovery started to go a lot faster and smoother once I started to take Lion's Mane. This is my own experience, I am just reporting it and I am not making any medical claim about Lion's Mane..
At that point, I had looked for a new activity to call work and the idea of developing my long-time love affair with chocolate came naturally and I wanted to include Lion's mane. It helped me so, I wanted to share it with the world, just as simple as that. Plus what is wrong with doubling up on antioxidants, vitamins and minerals? Both chocolate and Lion's mane are extremely rich in those micro nutrients.
I urge you to further inform yourself about Medicinal mushrooms so you can make an informed decision for yourself.
https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/lions-mane-mushroom
https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/323400
https://www.webmd.com/diet/what-are-the-health-benefits-of-lions-mane-mushrooms
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10675414/