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Lion’s mane mushrooms (Hericium erinaceus) are white, globe-shaped fungi that have long, shaggy spines. People can eat them or take them in the form of supplements. Research suggests that they may offer a range of health benefits, including reduced inflammation and improved cognitive and heart health.
People in Asia use these mushrooms for both culinary and medicinal purposes. Health food stores sell lion’s mane extract in supplement form, and both the fungus and its extracts appear to be beneficial to health.
Here we discuss the potential benefits of lion’s mane mushrooms and consider the possible risks and side effects of their use.
Lion’s mane mushrooms may help with the following:
Inflammation contributes to many medical conditions, including diabetes, heart disease, and autoimmune diseases.
A 2012 study evaluating the medicinal potential of 14 types of mushroom found that lion’s mane had the fourth highest antioxidant activity, which researchers described as “moderate to high.”
Lion’s mane mushrooms may enhance the immune system, partly by reducing inflammation and preventing oxidation.
ResearchTrusted Source on mice suggests that lion’s mane mushrooms may boost the activity of the intestinal immune system.
The results of another studyTrusted Source on mice indicate that a protein in lion’s mane mushrooms encourages the growth of beneficial gut bacteria that strengthen immunity.
Extracts from lion’s mane mushrooms may be beneficial in the treatment of anxiety and depression.
In a 2015 studyTrusted Source, mice that consumed lion’s mane mushroom extract displayed fewer depressive behaviors and had blood markers that indicated lower depression. The researchers suggest that this is due to the extract’s anti-inflammatory effects.
The findings of a 2018 animal studyTrusted Source support this, with the authors concluding that these mushroom extracts may contain agents that are useful for treating depressive disorders.
In a small Japanese study, women with a variety of health complaints, including menopausal symptoms and poor sleep quality, ate cookies containing lion’s mane extracts or placebo cookies for 4 weeks. The participants who ate the extract reported lower levels of irritation and anxiety than those in the placebo group.
It is possible that lion’s mane mushrooms might boost cognitive function, but the existing research is mainly on animals.
In one studyTrusted Source, lion’s mane dietary supplements appeared to give mice better object recognition and recognition memory.
Other researchersTrusted Source have concluded that the mushrooms may have the potential to treat or prevent diseases that cause a decline in cognitive health, such as Parkinson’s disease and Alzheimer’s disease.
However, there is currently a lack of research on the effects of lion’s mane mushrooms in humans with Alzheimer’s disease.
An older Japanese studyTrusted Source on adults aged between 50 and 80 years with mild cognitive impairment found that daily consumption of mushroom extract for 16 weeks led to higher scores on cognitive function scales compared with a placebo group. These scores decreased again once the participants stopped taking the extract.
Lion’s mane extract may improve heart health, but the research to date has primarily used animal subjects.