Lion's Mane

£14.99 GBP

What Is Lion's Mane?

Lion's mane is the name of a mushroom species characterised by its shaggy white appearance resembling that of a lion’s mane.

In Japan — where the mushroom is popular culinary food for its delicious lobster flavour and a long list of health benefits — the mushroom goes by the name of yamabushitake.

This particular mushroom is most commonly found growing in temperate forests in cooler climates around the world including Asia, Europe, and North America. You can find these mushrooms growing out of evergreen trees in the late summer and fall.

As a health supplement, lion’s mane mushroom is used to support cognitive function, immune health, and mood.

The key to using this supplement effectively is to be consistent and take the herb for long periods of time. The effects of the mushroom are cumulative — increasing in their effectiveness the longer you take the supplement.

The Benefits of Lion's Mane:

• Promotes nerve growth factor (NGF).

• Supports cognitive health to ward off age-related cognitive decline.

• Speeds up recovery of the nervous tissue after an injury.

• Reduces oxidative stress throughout the body.

• Boosts immune function.

• Helps defend the body against the negative side-effects of stress.

The Science Behind Lion's Mane

Cognitive Function

One of the biggest problems encountered as we age is a loss of brain cells (neurons). This happens throughout the course of life as a result of oxidative damage, injuries to the head, lack of sleep, alcohol consumption, and toxic compounds we’re exposed to from our environment.

As we lose brain cells our cognitive function may begin to decline. We may experience memory loss, inability to concentrate, confusion. Irritability, mood disorders, and other more serious neurodegenerative disorders.

Lion's mane has the unique ability to increase a compound in the brain known as nerve growth factor (NGF). This compound is used to stimulate the production of new brain cells to replace those that were lost — thus delaying, or preventing the consequences of cognitive decline.

This effect is also useful for promoting faster recovery from other forms of damage as well — including traumatic injuries to the head, oxidative damage, and chronic stress.

Mood & Stress

Low mood and chronic stress are common among people living in the modern world. Many experts agree that stress is one of the main causes of disordered mental states is inflammation.

In the short term, inflammation is a good thing — it helps to deliver blood and nutrients to the damaged area, along with immune cells designed to clean up the mess and remove infectious agents that may take residence in the area.

However, long-term inflammation can damage the integrity of the blood-brain barrier — allowing inflammatory messengers to go from the bloodstream to other areas located deep within the brain. Ultimately this can lead to changes in the neurochemical balance inside the brain which can affect our ability to maintain our moods and manage stress effectively.

Lion’s mane contains a variety of powerful anti-inflammatory compounds and a strong affinity for the brain. This effect helps to reduce the overall inflammation taking place around the blood-brain barrier — giving it a chance to recover and keep unwanted compounds out of the sensitive regions of the inner brain.

Immune Function

The immune system is a complex network of cells all working together to identify, mark, and destroy invading microorganisms and harmful compounds within the body.

Additionally, the immune system is tasked with removing damaged cells in the body — including cells that have become cancerous.

Lion’s mane has been shown to support the human immune system by supporting the production of new immune cells in the bone marrow — making the immune system more efficient at doing its job.

Although there are hundreds of potentially active ingredients in the lion’s mane mushroom, a group of long-chain sugar molecules known as polysaccharides are believed to be the primary active ingredients for this effect.

Similar polysaccharides are abundant in many other medicinal mushroom species with powerful immune-enhancing benefits like reishi, turkey's tail, and chaga.

Is Lion's Mane The Supplement For Me?

Lion’s mane mushrooms are a popular supplement for a few different reasons, but the most popular application is its use as a nootropic for supporting cognitive health.

There are few compounds known today that have the ability to interact with nerve growth factor the same way lion's mane does — making it a unique and highly beneficial supplement for a wide range of neurological functions.

People often take this supplement long-term to protect the brain from age-related cognitive decline, promote healing of the nervous tissues after an injury, to support study efforts at university, and to reduce inflammation in the brain that may be negatively affecting mood.

Outside the brain, lion’s mane supplements are used to fight inflammation, boost immune function, and support other systems of the body subject to the side-effects of oxidative damage like the cardiovascular and lung tissue.

Lion’s mane has many uses, and is an excellent daily health supplement for the whole body — with a special focus on the brain nervous system.

Ingredients & Dosage

Ingredients Per Serving (2 Capsules):

Lion's Mane (From 5:1 Extract) 1000mg.

Ingredients: Lion's Mane (From 5:1 Extract), Brown Rice Flour (Bulking Agent), Vegetarian Capsule (Hypromellose).

Recommended Dose:

Take 2 capsules daily with a meal, or as advised by your healthcare professional.

Want to find out more about Lion's Mane?

Download our Information Pack below, with all the latest facts, tips, dosage instructions and related studies.

INFORMATION PACK

ENHANCING YOUR LION'S MANE SUPPLEMENT

There are a few other supplements you can combine with your Lion's Mane to achieve an even greater benefit...

1. For Cognitive Health

Lion’s Mane is one of the best supplements for the neurological system over the long-term. It has several important benefits, but the primary effect is through NGF.

This provides a host of beneficial effects on the brain but can take several weeks of regular use to provide any noticeable benefits.

For this reason, a lot of people choose to combine their lion’s mane with other cognitive enhancing supplements to optimise these effects and produce a faster onset of effects.

Some of the most common supplements used alongside lion’s mane for this purpose is Uridine Monophosphate or CDP-Choline. Both of these supplements provide nutrients to the brain that are required to regenerate damaged nerve cells. If there aren’t enough building blocks or cofactors to drive the neurodegenerative process promoted by lion’s mane, the overall effect is going to be much slower and less efficient.

Taking these supplements alongside one another maximises each of these supplements effects. The lion’s mane stimulates the body's demand for new nerve cells, while the uridine monophosphate or CBD-choline provide the precursors and cofactors needed to facilitate the process.

SHOP COGNITIVE SUPPORT SUPPLEMENTS

2. For Stress Support

Lion’s mane is also popular for protecting the body from the negative consequences stress has on the body. It’s powerful anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects combined with its ability to promote the regeneration of damaged nerve tissue makes this supplement ideal for people who experience high-stress levels on a regular basis.

Although this supplement is useful for protecting the body and mind from the negative effects of stress, it doesn’t do much to alleviate the stress response itself.

For this reason, a lot of people choose to combine their lion’s mane with other stress-support supplements like Rhodiola that have a more direct influence on the stress-response itself.

Rhodiola acts directly on the region of the brain responsible for regulating the stress response — known as the hypothalamus. It buffers our ability to resist stress — raising the threshold that needs to be reached before the stress response is triggered.

This is a perfect supplement to take alongside lion’s mane if the primary goal is to protect the body from the negative consequences of long-term stress.

Another excellent herb to take alongside lion’s mane is Ashwagandha. This herb has a similar effect on the body to Rhodiola, but works more directly on the adrenal glands directly — which is where cortisol is manufactured in the body.

Ashwagandha is better for people looking for protection against stress, as well as some mild sedative effects — while Rhodiola is better for people looking for a boost in energy levels.

SHOP ADAPTOGENS