CORDYCEPS MUSHROOM

Cordyceps is the mushroom our naturopaths hear about most from people who train. These are the questions they ask in store before you take it home.

A good fit if

• Endurance training is the reason you're buying
• You're happy with evidence that shows a real but modest effect, rather than a settled result
• You want the Latin species name on the label so you know which cordyceps you're getting
• You're choosing between cordyceps and reishi and fitness is your priority

Check with us first if

• You're having or have had cancer treatment. A review of case reports in people with cancer found mushroom products were the most often involved in severe reactions, mostly allergic. Talk to your treating team.
• You take a blood thinner, a medicine that affects your immune system, or medicine after a transplant. We haven't found any human interaction studies for cordyceps, so we won't guess either way.
• You're pregnant or breastfeeding. No trial included pregnant or breastfeeding women, and Australia's rules set no warning either way, which isn't the same as evidence that it's safe.
• It's for a child. There's no established safety position for cordyceps in children.
• You're buying it for focus or memory. The one trial that tested this found no benefit, so talk to us about what might suit you better.

• Cordyceps sinensis (cultivated). Best known for: The species used in the meta-analysis on endurance in athletes. Absorption: Not measured in the research we hold. Typical use: The one to choose if endurance is your reason; it can be sold as an AUST L listed medicine.
• Cordyceps militaris. Best known for: The most common commercial species, because it's easy to grow. Absorption: Not measured in the research we hold; one immune-marker trial used 1.5 g a day. Typical use: Sold here as a food, so it can't carry an approved health claim.
• Wild cordyceps. Best known for: The traditional 'winter worm, summer grass', which grows out of a caterpillar. Absorption: Not measured in the research we hold. Typical use: Can't be used in an Australian listed medicine, because it contains insect material.

Reference values. There's no recommended intake for cordyceps. It's a mushroom rather than an essential nutrient, so the NHMRC doesn't set one.

Typical supplemental range. Australian cordyceps products commonly provide around 1 to 3 g a day. The one trial we found that states a dose used 1.5 g a day of Cordyceps militaris for 4 weeks, and it measured immune markers, not endurance. The athlete review doesn't give a dose we can pass on. These figures are for context, not a recommendation, so read the label and follow its directions.

Upper level. None is set. Australia's permitted ingredients list (Schedule 1) sets no daily dose cap for Cordyceps sinensis. That doesn't mean there's no limit, just that the rules don't set one.

Worth knowing. Check the species before you compare doses, because a gram of militaris isn't the same as a gram of sinensis. What you need depends on your age, diet and health, so talk to one of our naturopaths.

Food first, where the diet allows it.

• Cordyceps itself: not eaten as food; taken as a powder, capsule or extract

If any of these sound like you, talk to one of our naturopaths or your doctor before you start.

• A known mushroom or mould allergy. Allergy was the main cause in the severe cases across 92 case reports in people with cancer, and those cases mostly involved mushroom products.
• Cancer. Mushroom health-food products were behind most of the severe reactions reported in people with cancer. Check with your treating team.
• Pregnancy and breastfeeding. None of the trials we hold included pregnant or breastfeeding women, and Schedule 1 has no pregnancy warning for Cordyceps sinensis.
• Children. Safety in children hasn't been established for cordyceps.
• Blood thinners, immunosuppressants and transplant medicines. There are no human interaction studies, so we can't say either way.
• Vegans and vegetarians buying wild or unlisted cordyceps. Wild cordyceps grows from a caterpillar, and only a listed Cordyceps sinensis medicine has to exclude insect material.
• If you take prescription medicines, check with your doctor, pharmacist or one of our naturopaths before you start.