What Is Mushroom Coffee? And Why You Should Try Them

Mushrooms have already made a name for themselves in the world of medicine. They also are a must-have ingredient for many delicious meals. And now, even coffee drinkers are looking into the mushroom variant of their favorite drink. So, what is Mushroom coffee? Let’s find out.

What Is Mushroom Coffee?

Just like any regular black coffee, Mushroom Coffee is also from powdered coffee beans. The only difference is that it has pulverized fungi in the mix. Although they have mushroom bits, this coffee doesn’t taste like a mushroom. They don’t have that usual earthy flavor.

But compared to other coffee, they have less caffeine content. Usually, a regular cup of ordinary coffee has around 150 to 200 milligrams of caffeine. On one hand, the mushroom version of the same serving only has about 9 milligrams to 75 milligrams

Mushroom Coffee: How It is Made

Mushroom coffee is made by drying the mushrooms and then grounding them into powder. Afterward, the mushroom powder is mixed with ground coffee beans. And that’s pretty much it. 

Simple, right? You might be thinking you can do this on your own. And you’re right. DIY Mushroom coffee is also a thing. You can even buy powdered mushrooms to add to your coffee. Some even use mushroom extract. But if you do not have the resources or the time to do this, it’s okay to buy it as a mushroom coffee.

Mushroom Coffee: The Kinds of Mushroom in it.

Not all mushrooms can be mixed into coffee. But since Mushroom Coffee is becoming popular, it won’t be a surprise if more mushrooms will be mixed in coffee. But for now, here are the four mushrooms commonly used in Mushroom Coffee.

Reishi

Also known as the Mushroom of Immortality, Reishi mushrooms have a lot of health benefits. This genus of polypores is found growing on wood. Though they aren’t famous in western cultures, Reishi is well-known on the eastern side. This fungus is particularly used in Chinese Medicine since ancient times.

Reishi Mushroom Health Benefits include cancer-fighting, immune system boosting, and liver care. For more information, check out our article “The Mushroom of Immortality”. With that being said, it is no surprise why experts find ways to include Reishi in our daily routines. And one of them is a tasty cup of coffee.

Chaga

You might mistake these fungi for a large lump of dirt on a birch tree. But in reality, it is one of the most vitamin and mineral-rich mushrooms out there. Chaga is well-regarded for its ability to slow the aging process. Other Chaga health benefits include cholesterol reduction and cancer preventer. It is also considered as an immune system booster and diabetes fighter. With these health benefits, no wonder Chaga is now included in coffee.

Lion’s Mane

When it comes to brain health, the mushroom for the job is Lion’s Mane. It has the potential ability to help in treating many mild cognitive impairments. This fungus can also cure Alzheimer’s disease. It also shows potential in reducing leg cramps and anxiety.

Cordyceps

One of the weirdest looking mushrooms is the Cordyceps. This fungus is very rare for you can only find them on the back of caterpillars and alike. But recently, experts found ways to produce Cordyceps in labs. Now that there is more supply than before, you can enjoy the benefits of Cordyceps. If you love drinking coffee, then you can try Cordyceps Coffee.

For more details on Lion’s Mane and Cordyceps, check out our “Top 4 Good for the Brain Mushroom“.

Mushroom Coffee: 10 Healthy Reasons Why You Should Give It A Chance

Since we know the answers to “what is mushroom coffee?”, it’s time to tackle the “why’s”. Still in doubt, whether you should try Mushroom Coffee? Find out the 10 healthy reasons why.

• It’s Anti-Inflammatory

When the immune system surpasses its limit, it will start attacking healthy body tissues. This will cause inflammation. This can cause conditions like arthritis, fibromyalgia, celiac disease, and irritable bowel to name a few.

Though medicine is highly recommended. Doctors also say that it is important to eat anti-inflammatory foods. This is to aid the medicine in transforming and restoring your health as it recovers from inflammation. Mushroom coffee is one of them.

There are a lot of mushrooms that have anti-inflammatory properties. As of today, Reishi mushrooms and Chaga mushrooms are pretty common variants of mushroom coffee. There is also a Shiitake coffee but it is a bit rare.

• It Stabilizes Your Immune System

If your immune system is weak, diseases can easily take over your body and damage your health. You can certainly get infected with the virus around you. If you need a boost for your immune system, try mushroom coffee. 

There are plenty of mushrooms that can boost your immune system. The most highly-praised of them all is the Reishi. Luckily, Reishi mushroom coffee is very common in the market. If you want a different variant but with the same benefit, try Shiitake mushroom coffee. There is also a Maitake Mushroom Coffee. Maitake is also known to be a powerful immunity booster.

• It Protects Your Liver

Do you know that moderate consumption of regular coffee can already lower risks of liver cancer? What more if it is a cup of healthy mushroom coffee. Studies find patients with hepatitis B have improved significantly within a month. This is after taking mushrooms like Reishi. This proves that the famous Reishi coffee can serve as an efficient liver protector.

Apart from Reishi, there are a lot of mushrooms that can protect your liver. Cordyceps is another fungi-based coffee that is good for your liver. Shiitake Coffee is also believed to help elevate liver enzymes. 

• It Makes Your Heart Healthier

There is an organ in our body that cannot stop functioning properly. That is the heart. The heart is the one that pumps blood and oxygen over the body. Anything that can stop it from functioning properly can be lethal. Fortunately, mushroom coffee promotes a healthier cardiovascular system.

A lot of mushrooms are good for the heart. But if you want the most effective of them, you can try Shiitake coffee. Recent reports say that regular coffee can already lower the risks of heart failure, stroke, and coronary heart disease. You can bet what more healthy fungus coffee can do to your heart.

• It is Less Acidic

Coffee is known to be acidic. It can cause stomach upset and heartburn. Since not many of us can give up our daily morning coffee, we tend to look for a low-acid coffee. What coffee is low in acid? You got it right! Mushroom Coffee!

But that’s not all. Mushroom Coffee is a good acid-alkaline balance. This is important since many body functions happen only at a specific level of acidity or alkalinity. There are many enzymes and chemical reactions that function best at a certain pH level.

It is good to note that an acidic diet can take a toll on our bones and muscles as we age. If you want to be naturally energized and slow down aging, switching to an alkaline diet is perfect. 

• It Promotes Weight Loss

Do you want to lose weight? Mushroom coffee can help with that in more ways than one. One of them is the already mentioned alkaline diet. The alkaline diet is also capable of naturally shedding the pounds from our weight. Apart from that, it further assists the body by boosting its metabolism. 

It has been discovered that mushrooms have active properties. These active properties increase the metabolism rate of the body after eating mushrooms. When your metabolism is faster, your body uses more energy to digest food efficiently. When more energy is used, fat and calories are broken down to fuel the energy. Thus, this will result in weight loss.

For mushroom coffee that can help you lose weight effectively, the most well-researched is the Reishi mushroom coffee. Shiitake Coffee and Maitake Coffee are also good alternatives. 

• It Doesn’t Keep You Awake All Night

As mentioned earlier, Mushroom Coffee has less caffeine content than regular coffee. Because of this, you can enjoy a cup of coffee even in the afternoons or evenings. You don’t have to worry about finding it hard to sleep at night. 

The best part? It can even help you develop a good sleeping pattern. According to studies, mushrooms can even cure insomnia and other body factors that contribute to it. It is also known that drinking mushroom coffee can reduce chronic fatigue disease. The said disease can make people feel exhausted all the time.

There’s only one mushroom that is proven to be able to help with one’s sleep. That is Reishi mushroom. Lucky for those coffee lovers out there, this fungus is a very common type of coffee.

• It Lowers The Risk of Parkinson’s Disease

You may be wondering, “what is Parkinson’s Disease?”. This is an incurable degenerative condition. People diagnosed with this disorder lose their ability to walk. Aside from that, balancing and coordinating the body become grueling for them. In short, this is a disease you do not want to have.

Though it was considered incurable, studies show that drinking mushroom coffee may prevent and fight this disease. This is because of the anti-inflammatory components of mushrooms. They prevent Parkinson’s disease by blocking the deterioration of the cells. They can also be helpful with other degenerative disorders.

Reishi Coffee and Chaga Coffee are your best bet for this. If you want other options, you can also try Shiitake Coffee.

• It Reduces Cholesterol

We already discussed why mushroom coffee is both a weight loss agent and a good heart protector. But it is good to take note, that mushroom coffee can lower the overall cholesterol of your body. If you ever ate too much cholesterol, drink a cup of Shiitake Coffee. If you can’t find one, Reishi coffee is also fine.

• It Marks Down the Risk of UTI

Urinary Tract Infection, or UTI for short, is a disease caused by bacteria. But, what makes this infection worse are its intolerable symptoms. Its symptoms are cramps, frequent and painful urination, and fever. 

There are many ways to cure UTI. However, you can’t have a cup of coffee while having this infection. Regular coffee can aggravate the symptoms making them more unbearable. But that’s just regular coffee.

But with mushroom coffee, it does not aggravate bladder infection symptoms. Plus, according to reports, regular intake of fungi-mixed coffee may relieve UTI. So if you ever find yourself having a UTI, you now know what to drink.

Wrap up

So, what is mushroom coffee? It could be the healthiest coffee you ever had or something you just read about. But we hope it isn’t the latter. Give mushroom coffee a chance.

You can buy it as a coffee or you can make your own. Many species of mushrooms are now turned into the coffee mix. Thus, soon, you will have a lot of options. With the many health benefits it has, you’ll never run out of reasons to keep drinking fungi-made coffee