Benefit, what conditions does it help? Why
consume it?
Over the last couple of decades, Agaricus blazei has been
studied and developed as a novel functional food in Japan, Korea, China,
and Taiwan. Traditionally known as "God's Mushroom," it contains
polysaccharide-protein complexes that have been researched for their
immune system activity.
Mushroom
Information
The group of mushrooms in the Agaricus family are probably some of
the best known mushrooms in the Western world. The white buttons sold in
stores as mushrooms are a cultivated variety of Agaricus
bisporus now called Agaricus brunnescens. The wild Crimini and
Portabella mushrooms are also cultivars of this species. A cultivar is
defined as a variety of a plant that has been created or selected
intentionally and maintained through cultivation.
International J Medical Mushrooms 2013. Royal sun medicinal mushroom, Agaricus brasiliensis Ka21 (higher Basidiomycetes), as a functional food in humans. The Royal Sun medicinal mushroom, Agaricus brasiliensis, is used as a natural health product. In Japan, however, the quality control of some of these mushroom products has been viewed as a safety problem. Focusing on the quality control of A. brasiliensis KA21, we have performed several safety studies. To date, we have established evidence that this mushroom can be used safely as an immunostimulant and to mediate biochemical parameters associated with obesity or diabetes. Furthermore, to improve the manufacturing process of this mushroom, we have studied the relationship between its pharmaceutical actions and the conditions of its cultivation and thermal management.
Cancer, tumors, quality of life in cancer patients
Cancer Science 2004.
Isolation of an anti-angiogenic substance from Agaricus blazei
its antitumor and antimetastatic actions.
We previously found that ergosterol isolated from Agaricus blazei inhibited
tumor growth through the inhibition of tumor-induced neovascularization. In the
present study, we isolated further anti-angiogenic substances. This
is the first report showing that sodium pyroglutamate as
an anti-angiogenic substance has potent anti-tumor and anti-metastatic actions, as
well as immune-modulatory activity, in tumor-bearing mice.
Complementary Therapies in Medicine 2013. Quality of life improvements among cancer patients in remission following the consumption of Agaricus blazei Murill mushroom extract. The aim of this preliminary clinical study was to assess if the daily intake of Agaricus blazei Murill (ABM) granulated powder (SSI Co., Ltd., Tokyo, Japan) for 6 months improved the quality of life (QOL) in cancer patients in remission. Subjects diurnally took 1 (1.8 g), 2 (3.6 g), or 3 (5.4 g) packs/day orally for 6 months. The SF-8 Health Survey questionnaire was used to evaluate the QOL. The differences between the SF-8 baseline scores at the time of entry and 6-months after ABM treatment were evaluated. The results showed a significant improvement in QOL in both physical and mental components. More specifically, QOL effects of ABM in different genders showed males improved physical components, while females improved only mental components. QOL effects in the different age groups showed that ages 65 and under improved mental components, while ages 66 and older improved physical components. Furthermore, with respect to optimal dose effects of ABM with respect to QOL improvement, two packs per day for 6 months showed improvements in both physical and mental components. This preliminary longitudinal clinical study demonstrated that daily intake of ABM appears to improve both physical and mental components based on SF-8 qualimetric analysis.
Biomed Res Int. 2017. Cytotoxic Effect on Human Myeloma Cells and Leukemic Cells by the Agaricus blazei Murill Based Mushroom Extract, Andosan™. Andosan, which contains 82.4% Agaricus blazei Murill, together with medicinal mushrooms Hericium erinaceus (14.7%) and Grifola frondosa (2.9%), has a cytotoxic effect on primary myeloma cells, other myeloma cell lines, and leukemia cell lines in vitro.
Chemotherapy and gynecological tumors
Natural killer cell activity and quality of life were improved by consumption
of a mushroom extract, Agaricus blazei Kyowa, in gynecological cancer
patients undergoing chemotherapy.
Int J Gynecological Cancer. 2004.
One hundred cervical, ovarian, and
endometrial cancer patients were treated either with carboplatin
plus VP16 (etoposide)) or with carboplatin plus taxol every 3 weeks for at least three cycles with or without
oral consumption of agaricus extract. Chemotherapy-associated side
effects such as appetite, alopecia, emotional stability, and general weakness
were all improved by the mushroom treatment.
Which agaricus mushroom extract is most effective for cancer treatment.?
Since such human trials are very limited, it is difficult to
guess which extract is better, what dosages are ideal, and how often one should
take them and for how long. All these questions about its role in cancer
prevention and treatment are still not answered by the research. We need several
more studies by different
research teams to have more answers.
Diabetes
and blood sugar benefit
The mushroom Agaricus Blazei in combination with metformin and
gliclazide improves insulin resistance in type 2 diabetes: a randomized,
double-blinded, and placebo-controlled clinical trial.
J Alternative Complement Med. 2007.
Of a population of 536 registered diabetes patients with 72
subjects (1) aged between 20 and 75 years, (2) being Chinese, (3) having
type 2 diabetes for more than 1 year, and (4) having been taking gliclazide and metformin for more than 6 months were enrolled in this
study. The enrolled patients were randomly assigned to either receiving
supplement of Agaricus blazei extract or placebo (cellulose) 1500
mg daily for 12 weeks. The mushroom extract improves
insulin resistance among subjects with type 2 diabetes. The increase in
adiponectin concentration might be the mechanism that brings the beneficial effect.
Sarcoma agaricus research
Oral administration of Agaricus blazei (H1 strain) inhibited tumor growth in
a sarcoma 180 inoculation model.
Exp Anim. 2003.
Agaricus blazei (H1 strain) was tested for its anti-cancer
activity using a sarcoma 180 (S180) inoculation model. The growth of S180 was
significantly inhibited in the treated groups.
Ulcerative colitis, intestinal disease
There is some early research regarding its influence on
ulcerative colitis
which causes inflammation of the gastrointestinal system.
Substances,
chemical, ingredients
There are many different substances in agaricus mushroom that have
potential medicinal properties including polysacharides such as beta
glucan, ergosterol, sodium pyroglutamate, laccase, lectin, and
blazeispirane derivatives.
What is the percentage of beta glucans in the
Agaricus Blazei extract 400 mg capsule? Polysaccharides are 160 mg
according to the bottle, does that equal out to 25% beta glucans?
There are a number of different polysaccharides within the agaricus mushroom extract, beta glucans are not the only ones.
Furthermore, different polysaccharides have different health effects, and
it is not necessarily clear at this time whether a higher percentage or
lower percentage of beta glucans within a particular extract
product would offer more health benefits. We don't know exactly the portion
of beta glucan within the polysaccharides of this supplement.
Doctor's Best is the manufacturer of
this product and their website would have the contact number if
you have a strong interest in finding out the exact beta glucan content.
Agaricus side effects,
risk, safety, toxicity
Up to 2014, few agaricus side effects had been reported in Japan,
where it has been in use as a dietary supplement since the mid 1990s.
There is now a report in the medical literature that three cancer patients
taking an agaricus supplement had liver damage.
An Alternative Medicine, Agaricus blazei,
May Have Induced Severe Hepatic Dysfunction in Cancer Patients.
Japan J Clinical Oncology. 2006..
We report three cases of patients with advanced cancer who showed severe
hepatic damage, and two of whom died of fulminant hepatitis. All the
patients were taking Agaricus blazei extract, one of the
most popular complementary and alternative medicines among Japanese
cancer patients. In one patient, liver functions recovered gradually
after she stopped taking it, but she restarted taking it, which resulted
in deterioration of the liver function again. The other patients who
were admitted for severe liver damage had started taking it several days before admission. Although several other factors
cannot be completely ruled out as the causes of liver damage, a strong
causal relationship between the Agaricus blazei extract and liver damage
was suggested and, at least, taking the Agaricus blazei extract made the
clinical decision-making process much more complicated.
Comments by Dr. Sahelian: For the time being, limit your intake to maximum 3 times a week and a full week off each
month. It is not clear at this time whether the problem was with the
particular agaricus supplement these patient were using, i.e,
Himematsutake as it is called in Japan, or whether the problem of liver harm applies to all
brands. Was the Himematsutake product these Japanese
cancer patients were taking contaminated with something else? It is also not clear whether the liver problem is dose
dependent. Sometimes patients with cancer will take a very high amount of
a supplement thinking more is better. It is also not clear whether the
liver damage occurred due to the fact that these patients may have been on
chemotherapy drugs which weakened their liver and immune system.
Lack of subchronic toxicity of an aqueous extract of
Agaricus blazei Murrill in F344 rats.
Food Chem Toxicology 2005.
As a part of its safety assessment, the present 90-day subchronic toxicity
study was performed in F344 rats. In conclusion, A. blazei Murrill extract even
at 5% in the diet did not cause remarkable adverse effects in F344 rats.
Use by cats, pets
My veterinarian has suggested that I give my
cat, who has been diagnosed with an inflammatory mass in the bladder,
possibly early stage transitional cell carcinoma, agaricus Blazei. He said
he has used it in two cats that had mammary tumors, seeing some positive anti
tumor action. Have you had any experience with using this
product on cats?
We don't have any knowledge of
its use in cats.
Health claims
2008 - The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has approved health claims
for Agaricus blazei mushroom dietary supplements. The health claims now allowed throughout the EU are: "Helps the natural defences / contributes
to a normal immune response;" "helps the body to resist biologic insults;"
"support the immune system," and "is rich in beta glucans that contributes to
the immune activity."
I am a health food store manager and received
this promotional material, can you tell me if the benefits are true?
"Research indicates Agaricus Blazei stimulates the following Immune
System Cells Macrophage NK Cells Leukocytes T-Cells. It stimulates the following Immune System Cytokines TNF-alpha Interferons - (α, β, and γ) Interleukins - (1β, 6, 8, 12, and
23α). It limits damage from radiation and mutagens.
Human trials have shown it lowers blood sugar levels and supports
healthy liver function. Agaricus is a rare vegetable source of both
conjugated linoleic acid CLA and vitamin D and is a highly popular
supplement which is regularly used by over a half million people in
Japan."
Although early research has shown some benefits, it is too
early to recommend these pills to be taken on a daily basis for
prolonged periods.
Different varieties
Agaricus bisporus is a common edible cultivated mushroom also known
as white mushroom. The lectin from this common mushroom,
the most popular edible species in Western countries, has potent
antiproliferative effects on human epithelial cancer cells, without any
apparent cytotoxicity. This property confers to it an important
therapeutic potential as an antineoplastic agent.
This mushroom comes in different varieties, and
most of the research has been done with agaricus blazei. Therefore, it is
difficult to say how similar bisporus is to blazei in
terms of its effects on the human immune system or cancer treatment. In
addition, it is possible to have an extract from one company that
could be slightly or moderately different than an extract from a
different company since there is no standardization in agaricus mushroom
extract products. Different fractions can be present in a
supplement depending whether it is extracted by water, heat, ethanol,
hexane, and other methods of extraction.
Alberti
Agaricus blazei is an edible and medicinal mushroom. Agaricus blazei is
also known as the Brazilian sun mushroom or himematsutake.
californicus is a North-American species
Agaricus campestris - also known as meadow mushroom
ciuperci
macrosporus
muscarius
Agaricus subrufescens Peck was cultivated first in the
late 1800s in eastern North America. Once a popular market mushroom, this
agaricus species faded from commerce in the early 20th century. More
recently, a mushroom species growing wild in Brazil has been introduced
into cultivation in Brazil, Japan and elsewhere. This Brazilian mushroom
has been referred to by various names, most commonly as Agaricus blazei
Murrill (sensu Heinemann) and most recently as A. brasiliensis Wasser et
al.
xanthodermus is not edible
Emails
Q.
I'd like to point out that the scientific and medical research quoted in this
article is not applicable to the Doctor's Best products or certain other brands. The reason is that all
this research was performed using highly concentrated polysaccharide extracts,
not Doctor's Best products or quite a number of other brands sold over the
counter. Doctor's Best is not even selling extracts, but
simple mushroom powder. No hot water / ethanol extraction process was used to
make the active ingredient (polysaccharides, ergosterol) digestible. They do
call it 'extract' but if you have a look at their Certificate of Analysis (COA)
you will see that there is no percentage of polysaccharides listed. In
un-extracted mushroom powder the polysaccharide level cannot be determined using
UV absorbtion or HPLC. The polysaccharides also cannot be digested by humans.
The reason being mushrooms are made of chitin, which is 90% undigestible by
humans (lacking the enzyme chitinase). The consumer will not benefit from eating
Doctor's Best Agaricus capsules, since most of it will simply pass through his /
her body, undigested. Quality extracts like JHS (45% polysaccharides) or ORIVEDA
(60% polysaccharides) is preferable in my opinion.
A. I appreciate reading your viewpoint. I was wondering whether the
two products you mention are guaranteed not to cause hepatic dysfunction since
that has been the case as reported. I was wondering if perhaps a more potent
extract may cause more problems. What are your thoughts on this issue? Also,
without clinical trials, how can you be sure the product mentioned is or is not
of benefit? And what studies do you have that indicate the contents of this
product will pass undigested?
Buy Agaricus blazei mushroom
extract
90 Veggie Caps - Doctor's Best
Agaricus blazei is a medicinal mushroom that contains a special class of
polysaccharides known as beta glucans.
Studies show beta glucan stimulates
activity of natural killer cells, which are an important part of the immune
system. The agaricus in this product is extracted with the preferred hot
water/alcohol method to increase its digestibility and enhance bioavailability
of the polysaccharides. Originally discovered in Brazil, it is
widely consumed in many countries, where it is regarded as a health food due to its medicinal properties.
Buy Agaricus supplement or other mushroom extracts
Supplement Facts | ||
Serving Size: 1 capsule | ||
Servings Per Container: 90 servings | ||
Amount per serving | % Daily Value | |
Agaricus blazei extract (fruiting body) Supplies polysaccharides 160 mg | 400 mg | † |
Black pepper extract (fruit) (Bioperine) | 5 mg | † |
Suggested Use and dosage: Take 1 agaricus capsule no more than 3 times a week or as recommended by your health care provider. Until we learn more about the long term benefit and side effects, taking a full week off each month is a good idea. I have heard that agaricus liquid extract is sold, but have not seen any research why this form would be any better than regular oral capsules or tablets.
Buy Agaricus extract, cordyceps, or maitake
mushroom supplements
Supplement Facts:
Agaricus blazei extract 400 mg
(fruiting body)
Supplies polysaccharides 160 mg
Black pepper extract 5 mg
(fruit)