Journal

You've probably seen lion's mane in everything from coffee to gummies and wondered whether it does anything. Lion's mane is an edible mushroom that grows in a white clump of long, soft spines. Research on what it does in people is fairly new, so we went to the human studies. Below are three placebo-controlled studies in healthy adults: what each one found, and what it means for your day. The original papers are listed further down, so you can read them yourself. This article at a glance 3randomized, placebo-controlled human studies, each linked below 2benefits with human research behind them 1servingwhen the focus results showed up 12wksof daily use, when the memory result showed up The short version Two benefits have human research behind them. Benefit 1 Quicker reactions, clearer thinking. Researchers saw this after a single serving, in healthy adults. Benefit 2 Supports memory and cognition. Researchers saw this after 12 weeks of daily lion's mane, in healthy adults over 50. Online, you'll also see bigger claims about lion's mane and the brain. Those come largely from lab and animal research, which can't tell us what happens when a person takes it, so we left them out. Where this article's evidence sits 1Lab and animal studiesEarly clues about how something might workNot cited here 2Human studiesPeople actually take it  3With a placeboCompared against a look-alike with nothing active  4Randomized, double-blind, with a placeboWho gets what is set by chance, and nobody knows who got whatThe 3 studies here What makes a study worth trusting One person's experience can't tell you much. People feel sharper after a good night's sleep, or simply because they expect to. A well-run study is built to separate the effect of the thing being tested from everything else. Lion's mane      Placebo      A placebo One group takes lion's mane. The other takes a look-alike with nothing active in it. If the lion's mane group improves and the placebo group doesn't, you know it was the lion's mane. Everyone     coin flip Group A    Group B    Chosen by chance Who gets what, or in what order, is set by chance, not by the researchers, so the comparison starts out fair. Who got what      Revealedat the end Double-blind Neither the people taking part nor the researchers running the tests know who got what until the end. That way, what people expect can't sway the results. One personDay 1Day 2Day 3 Comparedwith themselves Crossover Some studies add one more step. Everyone tries each option on a different day, so each person is compared with themselves. You'll see the word in one of the sources below. Each of the three studies below was randomized, double-blind, and placebo-controlled. What each study found How long people took lion's mane in each study Study 1  4 weeks · result measured after the first serving · compared with a placebo group Study 2 One serving, on one of three visits · compared with each person's own starting point Study 3  12 weeks, every day · result measured at 12 weeks · compared with a placebo group  04 wks8 wks12 wks  when the result was measured time on lion's mane Study 1 Quicker on a focus test after one serving. Source 1 Who took partYoung, healthy adults Compared withA placebo group SetupRandomized, double-blind Young, healthy adults took either lion's mane or a placebo. After their first serving, people in the lion's mane group got faster on a task that measured how quickly they could focus while ignoring a distraction. The placebo group didn't show the same change. Study 2 Faster reactions after 1,000 mg of lion's mane extract. Source 2 Who took partHealthy adults Compared withTheir own starting point SetupRandomized, double-blind, crossover Healthy adults came in on three separate days. On each visit they took something different, in random order: lion's mane, a comparison ingredient, or a placebo. On the lion's mane day, people reacted faster than they had before taking it. Study 3 Better scores on a memory-and-thinking test after 12 weeks. Source 3 Who took partHealthy adults over 50 Compared withA placebo group SetupRandomized, double-blind, 12 weeks Healthy adults over 50 took lion's mane or a placebo every day for 12 weeks. Scores in the lion's mane group rose significantly, and the group finished ahead of the placebo group. What this means for your day The two results showed up on different timelines, and that tells you how to think about lion's mane. For focus   One serving Speed on attention and reaction tasks improved after a single serving. For memory              Every day, 12 weeks The memory result came from lion's mane taken every day for 12 weeks. The focus results came after a single serving, so a day you need to concentrate is a good day to try it. The memory result came after 12 weeks of daily use, so if memory is your goal, make it a daily habit. Check it yourself All three papers are free to read in full. Here's where to look on any one of them. 1Top of the pagedoi.org/10.…   2Abstract     3Methods · participants   Results · discussion    4Funding · conflicts of interest  Each paper has a DOI, a permanent ID that always points to the same paper. Click the link below, or paste the DOI into doi.org. The summary at the top of the paper, called the abstract, gives the design and the main results in one paragraph. If the words randomized, double-blind, and placebo-controlled appear there, the study used the safeguards described above. Then check who took part. A study in adults over 50 tells you about adults over 50, and a study in young adults tells you about young adults. Near the end, look for the sections on funding and conflicts of interest. That's where a paper says who paid for it and who supplied what was tested. These are studies of lion's mane itself. Source 1Docherty S, et al. 2023. The Acute and Chronic Effects of Lion's Mane Mushroom Supplementation on Cognitive Function, Stress and Mood in Young Adults: A Double-Blind, Parallel Groups, Pilot Study. Nutrients. Randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled. doi:10.3390/nu15224842 Source 2La Monica MB, et al. 2023. Acute Effects of Naturally Occurring Guayusa Tea and Nordic Lion's Mane Extracts on Cognitive Performance. Nutrients. Randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, crossover. doi:10.3390/nu15245018 Source 3Saitsu Y, et al. 2019. Improvement of cognitive functions by oral intake of Hericium erinaceus. Biomedical Research. Randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled. doi:10.2220/biomedres.40.125 Who might want to try it People whose work runs on focus. If your workday means switching between open tabs and still getting the hard thing done, this is the result to know: faster on attention tasks after a single serving. People thinking about memory for the long run. The memory result came from daily lion's mane over 12 weeks, in adults over 50. If that's your goal, plan on a daily habit. People who read labels. Lion's mane products can use the mushroom itself (the fruiting body), the mycelium (the root-like part), or a mix of both, and the amounts vary a lot. Check which part and how much before you buy. What to look for on a label 1 · Part of the mushroom   Fruiting body Mycelium Both 2 · Amount per serving  Lion's mane  mg If you're pregnant or breastfeeding, or you take prescription medication, check with your doctor first. There isn't enough research on those situations yet. If you have a mushroom allergy, avoid it.

The studies we read before choosing every amount in an ONDO cup, and the reasons behind each choice.