The Acute and Chronic Effects of Lion’s Mane Mushroom Supplementation on Cognitive Function, Stress and Mood in Young Adults: A Double-Blind, Parallel Groups, Pilot Study

Summary & key facts

This small pilot trial tested whether a Lion’s Mane mushroom supplement changes thinking speed, stress, or mood in healthy young adults. About 40 people aged 18–45 took either 1.8 grams of Lion’s Mane or a matching fake pill. One hour after a single dose, people who took Lion’s Mane were faster on a standard attention/speed test. After 28 days there was a small hint of lower self-reported stress, but most other thinking and mood measures did not clearly improve. The authors say these are tentative results because the study was small and more research with larger groups is needed.

Key facts:

• The study included about 40 healthy adults aged 18–45 who were randomly given either 1.8 grams of Lion’s Mane or a placebo; neither the participants nor the researchers knew who had which.
• Researchers measured effects both short-term (one hour after a single dose) and after daily use for four weeks.
• One hour after a single dose, people taking Lion’s Mane performed faster on the Stroop task, which tests attention and response speed.
• After 28 days of daily supplementation there was a small trend toward lower self-reported stress, but it did not meet the usual threshold for clear statistical evidence.
• Most other cognitive and mood measures showed no clear benefit, and a few measures were null or slightly negative.
• The authors describe this as a pilot study with a small sample, so the results are preliminary and need confirmation in larger trials.

Abstract

BACKGROUND: (Lion's mane) shows promise in improving cognitive function and mood. However, much of the human research has concentrated on chronic supplementation in cognitively compromised cohorts. OBJECTIVE: in a healthy, young adult cohort. DESIGN: in 41 healthy adults aged 18-45 years. RESULTS: = 0.051). CONCLUSIONS: may improve speed of performance and reduce subjective stress in healthy, young adults. However, null and limited negative findings were also observed. Given the small sample size, these findings should be interpreted with caution. Further investigation in larger sample sizes is crucial, however the findings of this trial offer a promising avenue of interest.

Topics

Bee Products Chemical Analysis Healthcare and Venom Research Pain Mechanisms and Treatments

Categories

Agricultural and Biological Sciences Insect Science Life Sciences

Tags

Alternative medicine Chronic stress Clinical psychology Cognition Developmental psychology Double blind Gerontology Internal medicine Medicine Mood Pathology Physical therapy Placebo Psychiatry Psychology

Substances

Other

Conditions & symptoms

Anxiety or worry Difficulty focusing Sadness or low mood