What are mushroom extracts and how are they made? Mushrooms, those fascinating funga found in forests, fields, and even on your pizza. Guess what? People are turning to supplements to utilize the power of these mushrooms! There is a lot to navigate to understand the differences and nuances. In todays blog we hope to cast some light on the differences between mushrooms that have been extracted and non-extracted mushrooms.
Did you know that raw mushrooms are indigestible?
The cell wall of a mushroom is made of a super tough substance called Chitin (Kai-tin) Mushroom extracts are created by breaking down the tough cell walls of the fruiting body. Some beneficial Compounds found in the cell wall are called beta-D- glucans. Triterpenes are also amazing but not locked up in the cell wall.
If you consumed mushrooms whole and uncooked, Beta glucans would basically pass through your digestive system without being absorbed into your body. Extraction is a very important step in the process, allowing these compounds to be available for your body to use. Various mushrooms require different solvents to be extracted. For example, beta-glucans, which are water-soluble, need hot water extraction to become bioavailable. On the other hand, tri/diterpenes, which are alcohol-soluble, require alcohol extraction to unlock their potential.
Here is a flow chart for our Lucid Lion's Mane blend of 3 different extracts: A hot water extract of fruit bodies that targets the beta glucans at 30+%, an alcohol extract of the fruit body that targets the diterpene hericenones at 2%, and a alcohol extract of the mycelium that targets the diterpene erinacines at 2%.
Mushroom Powder: A Fiberous Alternative
To Make mushroom powder, start by drying the mushrooms around 125F/52C usually in a dehydrator, then grind them into a fine powder. There is no extraction process involved. Plain and simple! with this technique you get lots of great fiber.
Without the extraction step, the beneficial compounds remain trapped within the tough cell walls. Resulting in your body struggling to use these compounds when you consume straight up mushroom powder. So basically raw mushroom supplements that don't get extracted are short-circuiting the process, and the health benefits they offer may be significantly reduced. They are less potent compared to extracts and may not provide the same level of therapeutic effects. Cooking is one easy way to break down the cell wall and make mushrooms powders more bio available.
Often it comes down to solubility. Extracts are much more soluble than non-extracted mushrooms. If there is muddy sludge in the bottom of your cup when you are done, it means there is lots of insoluble fiber in the product.
Tincture Extracts:
Mushroom tinctures offer an easy to use, shelf stable dose of medicinal compounds. To create a tincture, you simply place finely chopped organic mushroom material in a jar, add a food grade alcohol-based solvent, and let it sit in the dark for about a month or so, shaking it up from time to time. Tinctures use the alcohol as the extraction method and the delivery mechanism.
To compare this to an extracted powder: Imagine evaporating the alcohol and being left with only the residue powder. This residue powder is what our extract powders are: way more bang for your buck and totally bio available. The proof is in the pow!
if you plan to make extracts at home: make the alcohol extraction first, then do the hot water extraction. This is because the volatile beneficial compounds like triterpenes and diterpenes will be damaged in the hot water extraction from heat. we will get more into this particular topic in another blog.
Purity and Potency: The Key Difference
Extracts provide higher concentrations of bioavailable active compounds.
Both mushroom extracts and mushroom powders have their place in the world of supplements. The choice boils down to your preference on the health benefits you want. Consuming mushrooms in your diet provides a range of health advantages when used appropriately. The best thing to do is just get them inside you. If you aren't sure about what your mushroom product is, let us know and we can help you figure it out! We have a lot to unpack on this topic so please come back to learn more.
USE CODE EXTRACT10 to get 10% off 100g bags and Agarikon Tincture until Saturday Oct 21st, 2023
Read here about The red red flags to look our for in a mushroom product
WANNA DO IT YOURSELF?
Steps to Make Extracted Powder At Home
1. If using fresh mushrooms, first clean the fruiting bodies by rinsing or brushing.
2. Chop the mushrooms into small pieces (or dry and grind them to a powder) and place in a large pot with about 4 times as much water as mushrooms.
3. Simmer for 2-3 hours. (or pressure cook for 25min) Allow to totally cool. Pour in a blender (including the water and the fruiting bodies), and blend to a creamy consistency.
4. Dry the mixture. You can do this by pouring the mixture onto fruit leather trays in a dehydrator and drying at 95°F or by pouring onto lightly oiled baking trays in an oven on its lowest setting with the door ajar. dry until cracker crisp!
5. Break the dried mix up into chunks and process them in a spice grinder or food processor into a fine powder.
6. Add the extracted powder to just about anything.
This method gives you the whole mushroom, all the soluble and non soluble parts!