Along with the bold yet delicate taste that shiitake, maitake, and reishi mushrooms add to soups and other dishes, these gourmet delicacies are prized as herbal medicines. Traditional Asian healers have used them for centuries to strengthen the immune system and promote longevity. Recently, an extract from a different mushroom altogether PSK (Coriolus versicolor) was identified as a possible ally in the fight against cancer. While mushrooms other than these may well have specific health-promoting actions, they haven't been as thoroughly researched for medicinal purposes.
Shiitake (Lentinus edodes), maitake (Grifola frondosa), and reishi (Ganoderma lucidum) are available as powders. They also come as liquid extracts, which are more potent. For therapeutic purposes, however, supplements are preferred; indeed, maitake, shiitake and reishi are sometimes combined in one capsule.
All three of these healing mushrooms contain polysaccharides, powerful compounds that help in building immunity. Polysaccharides and other compounds in mushrooms may also lower cholesterol, reduce the risk of dangerous blood clots, prevent heart disease, relieve bronchitis and sinusitis, and possibly fight cancer cells and increase the potency of cancer treatments.
