Maitake Mushroom Powder

Overall Health Benefits of Maitake Mushroom Powder

• Treats symptoms of diabetes and improves blood sugar levels [1-4]
• Lowers blood pressure [3-6]
• Speeds up wound and tissue healing [7-9]
• Improves cholesterol levels [10-12]
• Improves kidney health [13-14]
• Boosts cognitive health and protects against Alzheimer’s disease [15-16]
• Fights cancer [17-20]
• Wards off depression and improves mood [21]
• Boosts immune function [22-25]
• Prevents bone abnormalities and lowers risk of fractures [26-27]

How Maitake Mushroom Powder Works

Maitake mushroom is a nutrient powerhouse, consisting of antioxidants, beta-glucans, vitamins B and C, copper, potassium, fiber, minerals, and amino acids. This is the reason why this medicinal mushroom is used to fight cancer, stimulate the immune system, lower lipid levels, and normalize blood sugar levels.

Proven Health Benefits of Maitake Mushroom Powder

Treats Symptoms of Diabetes and Improves Blood Sugar Levels

Studies suggest that maitake mushroom can help treat symptoms of diabetes and normalize blood sugar levels:

1. In insulin-resistant mice, treatment with 140 mg of water-soluble extract of maitake mushroom resulted in decreased circulating concentration of glucose and insulin after 4 to 7 days. [1]
2. In hyperglycemic mice, maitake mushroom reduced high blood sugar levels caused by a high-fat diet. [2]
3. In female Sprague-Dawley rats, maitake mushroom reduced blood sugar levels by enhancing insulin sensitivity. [3]
4. In high-fat diet-induced obese mice, administration of maitake mushroom extract treated glucose intolerance. [4]

Lowers Blood Pressure

The antihypertensive effects of maitake mushroom are backed by scientific evidence:

1. In female Sprague-Dawley rats, maitake mushroom reduced age-related hypertension. [3]
2. In hypertensive rats, oral administration of maitake mushroom for 8 weeks reduced blood pressure significantly. [5]
3. A study showed that maitake mushroom has blood pressure-lowering effects when used as a food additive or as a health supplement. [6]

Speeds Up Wound and Tissue Healing

Studies suggest that maitake mushroom can help speed up the recovery of wounds and damaged tissues:

1. A study showed that maitake mushroom can improve wound healing by modulating and maintaining the microbial community. [7]
2. A study showed that maitake mushroom enhanced blood leukocyte recovery after chemotherapy-induced bone marrow injury. [8]
3. A study also found that maitake mushroom can inhibit the production of pro-inflammatory mediators via activation of NF-κB signaling pathway, which can accelerate wound healing. [9]

Improves Cholesterol Levels

Studies show that maitake mushroom can bring down high cholesterol levels:

1. A study showed that maitake mushroom has the potential to reduce low-density lipoprotein (bad cholesterol). [10]
2. In rats, maitake mushroom supplementation produced lipid-lowering effects. [11]
3. In cholesterol-fed mice, 4 weeks treatment with maitake mushroom decreased total cholesterol and phospholipid. [12]

Improves Kidney Health

There are also studies supporting the benefits of maitake mushroom on kidney health:

1. In diet-streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats, maitake mushroom protected against kidney damage induced by oxidative stress. [13]
2. A study showed that maitake mushroom extract induced programmed cell death (apoptosis) of malignant kidney cells. [14]

Boosts Cognitive Health and Protects against Alzheimer’s Disease

Maitake mushroom can also help improve cognitive function and protect against age-related memory decline:

1. A study showed that maitake mushroom can protect against Alzheimer’s disease by enhancing the clearance of abnormal protein structures in the brain. [15]
2. A study also found that maitake mushroom contains compounds necessary for the maintenance and regeneration of the neuronal communication network. [16]

Fights Cancer Several lines of evidence show that maitake mushroom has anti-cancer properties:

1. In murine models, maitake mushroom produced anti-tumor effects. [17]
2. In human colon cancer cell lines, maitake mushroom exhibited anti-proliferative and anti-invasive effects. [18]
3. A study found that the polysaccharide peptide from maitake mushroom has anticancer activities. [19]
4. In mice with breast cancer, maitake mushroom reduced cancer cell growth and invasiveness and increased the overall survival of the subjects. [20]

Wards off Depression and Improves Mood A mice study found that oral supplementation with maitake mushroom produced significant antidepressant effects. [21]

Boosts Immune Function

Studies found that maitake mushroom has immune-boosting properties:

1. A study showed that maitake mushroom can protect against the harmful effects of mercury. [22]
2. A study reported that maitake mushroom exerts its immune-boosting activities through its antioxidant properties. [23]
3. A study found that maitake mushroom boosts the immune system by stimulating both the cellular and humoral branch of immune reactions. [24]
4. A study showed that the immune-boosting properties maitake mushroom can be attributed to its beta-glucans content. [25]

Prevents Bone Abnormalities and Lowers Risk of Fractures

Studies suggest that maitake mushroom is beneficial in combating age-related bone loss:

1. In human stem cells, maitake mushroom enhanced the process of bone formation. [26]
2. In rat bone cells, maitake mushroom administration decreased bone breakdown and improved bone formation. [27]

References:

1. Manohar V, Talpur NA, Echard BW, Lieberman S, Preuss HG. Effects of a water-soluble extract of maitake mushroom on circulating glucose/insulin concentrations in KK mice. Diabetes Obes Metab. 2002;4(1):43-48. doi:10.1046/j.1463-1326.2002.00180.x.
2. Kuo-Ping Shen, Chun-Han Su, Tzy-Ming Lu, Min-Nan Lai & Lean-Teik Ng (2015) Effects of Grifola frondosa non-polar bioactive components on high-fat diet fed and streptozotocin-induced hyperglycemic mice, Pharmaceutical Biology, 53:5, 705-709, DOI: 10.3109/13880209.2014.939290.
3. Preuss HG, Echard B, Bagchi D, Perricone NV. Maitake Mushroom Extracts Ameliorate Progressive Hypertension and Other Chronic Metabolic Perturbations in Aging Female Rats. Int J Med Sci 2010; 7(4):169-180. doi:10.7150/ijms.7.169.
4. Hana Aoki, Motoki Hanayama, Koichiro Mori & Ryuichiro Sato (2018) Grifola frondosa (Maitake) extract activates PPARδ and improves glucose intolerance in high-fat diet-induced obese mice, Bioscience, Biotechnology, and Biochemistry, 82:9, 1550-1559, DOI: 10.1080/09168451.2018.1480348.
5. Kabir, Yearul & KIMURA, Shuichi. (1989). Dietary mushrooms reduce blood pressure in spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR). Journal of nutritional science and vitaminology. 35. 91-4. 10.3177/jnsv.35.91.
6. Seo YR, Patel DK, Shin WC, Sim WS, Lee OH, Lim KT. Structural Elucidation and Immune-Enhancing Effects of Novel Polysaccharide from Grifola frondosa. Biomed Res Int. 2019;2019:7528609. Published 2019 Apr 16. doi:10.1155/2019/7528609.
7. Available from https://www.mdpi.com/1422-0067/20/21/5302/htm.
8. Lin H, de Stanchina E, Zhou XK, et al. Maitake beta-glucan promotes recovery of leukocytes and myeloid cell function in peripheral blood from paclitaxel hematotoxicity. Cancer Immunol Immunother. 2010;59(6):885-897. doi:10.1007/s00262-009-0815-3.
9. Wu, Shu-Jing & Lu, Tzy-Ming & Lai, Min-Nan & Ng, Lean-Teik. (2013). Immunomodulatory Activities of Medicinal Mushroom Grifola frondosa Extract and Its Bioactive Constituent. The American journal of Chinese medicine. 41. 131-44. 10.1142/S0192415X13500109.
10. Berger, A., Rein, D., Kratky, E. et al. Cholesterol-lowering properties of Ganoderma lucidum in vitro, ex vivo, and in hamsters and minipigs. Lipids Health Dis 3, 2 (2004). https://doi.org/10.1186/1476-511X-3-2.
11. Ding Y, Xiao C, Wu Q, et al. The Mechanisms Underlying the Hypolipidaemic Effects of Grifola frondosa in the Liver of Rats. Front Microbiol. 2016;7:1186. Published 2016 Aug 3. doi:10.3389/fmicb.2016.01186.
12. Sato, Mayumi & Tokuji, Yoshihiko & Yoneyama, Shozo & Fujii-Akiyama, Kyoko & Kinoshita, Mikio & Chiji, Hideyuki & Ohnishi, Masao. (2013). Effect of Dietary Maitake (Grifola frondosa) Mushrooms on Plasma Cholesterol and Hepatic Gene Expression in Cholesterol-Fed Mice. Journal of oleo science. 62. 1049-58. 10.5650/jos.62.1049.
13. Kou, L., Du, M., Liu, P. et al. Anti-Diabetic and Anti-Nephritic Activities of Grifola frondosa Mycelium Polysaccharides in Diet-Streptozotocin-Induced Diabetic Rats Via Modulation on Oxidative Stress. Appl Biochem Biotechnol 187, 310–322 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12010-018-2803-6.
14. Available from https://cancerres.aacrjournals.org/content/68/9_Supplement/2680.
15. Available from https://pubs.rsc.org/en/content/articlelanding/2019/ra/c9ra08245j#!divAbstract.
16. Ling-Sing Seow, S., Naidu, M., David, P. et al. Potentiation of neuritogenic activity of medicinal mushrooms in rat pheochromocytoma cells. BMC Complement Altern Med 13, 157 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1186/1472-6882-13-157.
17. Masuda Y, Nakayama Y, Tanaka A, Naito K, Konishi M (2017) Antitumor activity of orally administered maitake α-glucan by stimulating antitumor immune response in murine tumor. PLoS ONE 12(3): e0173621. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0173621.
18. Roca-Lema D, Martinez-Iglesias O, Fernández de Ana Portela C, Rodríguez-Blanco A, Valladares-Ayerbes M, Díaz-Díaz A, Casas-Pais A, Prego C, Figueroa A. In Vitro Anti-proliferative and Anti-invasive Effect of Polysaccharide-rich Extracts from Trametes Versicolor and Grifola Frondosa in Colon Cancer Cells. Int J Med Sci 2019; 16(2):231-240. doi:10.7150/ijms.28811.
19. Janet Yuen-Yan Chan, Enoch Chan, Shun-Wan Chan, Shun-Yin Sze, Ming-Fai Chan, Siu-Hung Tsui, Kit-Yee Leung, Robbie Yat-Kan Chan & Ivan Ying-Ming Chung (2011) Enhancement of in vitro and in vivo anticancer activities of polysaccharide peptide from Grifola frondosa by chemical modifications, Pharmaceutical Biology, 49:11, 1114-1120, DOI: 10.3109/13880209.2011.569557.
20. Roldan-Deamicis A, Alonso E, Brie B, Braico DA, Balogh GA. Maitake Pro4X has anti-cancer activity and prevents oncogenesis in BALBc mice. Cancer Med. 2016;5(9):2427-2441. doi:10.1002/cam4.744.
21. Bao H, Ran P, Sun L, et al. Griflola frondosa (GF) produces significant antidepressant effects involving AMPA receptor activation in mice. Pharm Biol. 2017;55(1):299-305. doi:10.1080/13880209.2016.1235590.
22. Zhang, W., Jiang, X., Zhao, S. et al. A polysaccharide-peptide with mercury clearance activity from dried fruiting bodies of maitake mushroom Grifola frondosa. Sci Rep 8, 17630 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-018-35945-9.
23. Lei Hong, Wang Weiyu, Wang Qin, Guo Shuzhen & Wu lebin (2013) Antioxidant and immunomodulatory effects of a α-glucan from fruit body of maitake (Grifola frondosa), Food and Agricultural Immunology, 24:4, 409-418, DOI: 10.1080/09540105.2012.704901.
24. Available from http://atm.amegroups.com/article/view/3394/4245.
25. Seo YR, Patel DK, Shin WC, Sim WS, Lee OH, Lim KT. Structural Elucidation and Immune-Enhancing Effects of Novel Polysaccharide from Grifola frondosa. Biomed Res Int. 2019;2019:7528609. Published 2019 Apr 16. doi:10.1155/2019/7528609.
26. Patel DK, Seo YR, Dutta SD, Lee OH, Lim KT. Influence of Maitake (Grifola frondosa) Particle Sizes on Human Mesenchymal Stem Cells and In Vivo Evaluation of Their Therapeutic Potential. Biomed Res Int. 2020;2020:8193971. Published 2020 Mar 6. doi:10.1155/2020/8193971.
27. Erjavec I, Brkljacic J, Vukicevic S, Jakopovic B, Jakopovich I. Mushroom Extracts Decrease Bone Resorption and Improve Bone Formation. Int J Med Mushrooms. 2016;18(7):559-69. doi: 10.1615/intjmedmushrooms.v18.i7.10. PMID: 27649725.