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  • menopause
23.10.24

Medicinal Mushrooms for Allergy Season

Medicinal Mushrooms for Allergy Season
What Causes Hay Fever & How Can Mushrooms Can Help?

Spring has officially sprung – the sweet smell of summertime will soon flood the air with BBQ smoke and freshly cut grass – and with it, the sneezing, sniffling, and itchy eyes of allergy season. If you’re looking for an all-natural way to combat your allergies, look no further than medicinal mushrooms. These fungi have been used for centuries to treat a variety of illnesses, including allergies. In this blog post, we will discuss how medicinal mushrooms work to combat allergies, and which are best suited for this purpose.

 

What Causes Allergies?

Allergies are caused by an overactive immune system response to substances that are typically harmless. When an allergen enters the body, it triggers the production of antibodies by the immune system. The antibodies attach to mast cells, which are found in tissues throughout the body. The mast cells then release histamine and other chemicals, causing symptoms such as inflammation, swelling, and itching. Reishi mushrooms boast powerful anti-inflammatory effects, containing compounds that can help to reduce chronic inflammation - with studies showing links between Reishi mushrooms and a reduction in inflammatory markers - one study found that Reishi extract was able to inhibit the production of pro-inflammatory cytokines, suggesting that Reishi mushrooms could be an effective natural treatment for inflammation related to allergies.

 

Reishi To The Rescue

Reishi mushrooms, along with other medicinal mushrooms, are immunomodulators, meaning that they are able to regulate the immune system. The science behind the immunomodulating response of Reishi mushrooms is complex, but it is thought to be linked to the presence of certain compounds known as Beta-glucans. These compounds work to modulate the activity of certain cells involved in the immune response, helping to manage allergies. However, it is not only the Beta-glucans that make Reishi such an effective immunomodulator – the triterpenes present in the mushroom also play a role. Triterpenes are a type of molecule that has been shown to modulate the activity of white blood cells, which are a key component of the immune system. Triterpenoid compounds such as lanostan deliver both anti-inflammatory and anti-histamine activity, with the latest research showing that Reishi holds 119 different triterpenoids!

 

 

What's The Liver Got To Do With It?
The lesser known factor to allergy response is the role of the liver. The liver is responsible for responsible for breaking down histamine – a key player in the inflammatory response. So, when our bodies are faced with allergens, the liver is in charge of regulating histamine levels to help fight off the invader. However, sometimes our immune system gets a little *dramatic* and overreacts, thus overloading the liver with TOO MUCH histamine, causing the allergy symptoms we all know and loathe. Recent studies have shown that Reishi can support the liver’s allergy response system. It is believed that Reishi does this by modulating the release of histamine, thereby lessening symptoms caused by histamine’s inflammatory effects. In addition to its effects on allergies, Reishi mushroom is also known to support liver health in general, believed to be due (at least in part) to the presence of ganoderic acids in Reishi. These acids are thought to help protect the liver from damage and improve its overall function. Reishi mushroom also contains high levels of antioxidants which can further protect cells in the liver from damage. As a result, regular consumption of Reishi extract may help keep the liver healthy and prevent some of the damaging effects of allergies.