Lion's Mane (Hericium erinaceus) is a nutritious medicinal mushroom that produces plump white clusters with icicle-like teeth. When cooked, it has a consistency and flavor similar to crab meat.
Properties: Lion's Mane is considered both an esteemed edible mushroom and a valuable medicinal and is currently being studied for its effects on neural health, Alzheimer's, and dementia. The mushroom contains a substance called erinacine, which has the ability to catalyze the production of nerve growth factor (NFG) and reduce the effects of Alzheimer's and other neurodegenerative disorders (Yamada et al., 1997). A study in Japan, on men aged 50-80 years old with mild cognitive impairment, suggests that Lion's Mane is effective at improving cognition. Subjects were split into two groups and half were given dry powdered Lion's Mane three times a day and observed over 16 weeks. At weeks 8, 12, and 16, the group taking Lion's Mane scored significantly better on a cognitive test than the other half in the placebo group (Mori et al., 2008). You can read more about this study here.
