🍄Mushrooms are a low-calorie food, high in fiber and rich in antioxidants such as vitamin C, selenium and choline.  Varieties such as maitake, morel, chanterelle, oyster, and shiitake are high in Vitamin D when exposed to sunlight. Mushroom teas are dried and ground into a powder form to create tea. 

Mushroom teas ☕️typically can contain the reishi, changa or lion’s mane mushrooms as the main ingredient.  These mushrooms have been used for over 4,000 years in Asian traditional medicine practices and are touted for reducing depression and anxiety, improving blood sugar, decreasing cancer risks due to their high antioxidant content, improving liver function and improving nerve function. But do they actually work? 

⚠️At this time, there aren’t many human studies showing strong evidence of the benefits, however the research is growing, especially from pharmaceutical studies, where mushrooms are being studied for their anti-bacterial and antioxidant benefits. 

A quick search on Amazon showed over 1,000 results, with prices ranging from $9 to $43.  Many of the teas have herbs and flowers to enhance the test of tea, which can also add to food-drug interactions. Tea is regulated by the FDA and you can search a product you are interested by visiting fda.gov and searching for CFSAN Adverse Event Reporting System. Also as a result of the FDA’s new organic flavoring law in December 2019, many tea manufacturers have removed their Organic label because they cannot comply with the new law.

In general, if you want to use muhroom tea as part of your wellness plan, a moderate amount per day can be part of a balanced diet.  Note some mushroom blends may be contraindicated if you are pregnant, breastfeeding, are on a blood thinner or are at risk for oxalate kidney stones.  Discuss with your healthcare provider to determine if mushroom tea is right for you (make sure to bring in the box with ingredients).