The Turkey Tail Mushroom

Turkey Tail Mushroom

Hi MEM Community!

I just made myself a delicious cup of tea with our Organic Turkey Tail Tincture and I think it’s about time I share with you the amazing properties of this super-abundant colorful medicinal mushroom.

But just to recap…

Thus far, we’ve covered a few other mushrooms including Reishi, which is known to power up immunity and promote healthy aging and lion’s mane is especially known to boost mental energy. History and research show us that these medicinal mushrooms have fantastic claims to fame, both in the past realms of traditional healing and today’s scientific research.

But among the most amazing of medicinal mushrooms, there is one that grows right under our very noses…Scientifically, it is called Trametes versicolor. In plain English, we call it the turkey tail mushroom. Turkey tail is an incredibly common mushroom, native to forests all around the world, including our own in the US. All the same, it’s quite difficult to identify, with many woodland fungi being very close imitators of this colorful wild inhabitant, usually found growing on the logs and limbs of trees.

Obviously, the name of the mushroom has a lot to do with its appearance. It grows in a fan-like shape, showing many layers and rings of striking and contrasting colors ranging from browns and tans to blues, creams, and even reds, making it look indeed quite like the tail of a wild turkey.

In China, where it has been used for thousands of years, this fungus is known as "Yun zhi", or the "cloud mushroom". Its Japanese name is "Kawaratake", or "mushroom by the river". The Ming dynasty edition of the Materia Medica (1500s CE) describes it as "beneficial to one's spirit and vital energy”. It was this mushroom’s popularity as a folk remedy that first caught the attention of modern researchers.

Benefits

• Supports long term health
• Contains anti-aging properties
• Helps the immune system resist infections and seasonal ailments
• Supports organ health and respiratory function

Uses of Turkey Tail

In traditional herbalism, Turkey Tail is consumed with hot water as a tea. It is known to boost vitality and energy, ward off cancer and support the spirit. Traditional uses also include invigorating the spleen, eliminating dampness and treating coughs and dyspnea. It is a powerful superfood, which is often used in teas, blended drinks, soups or food sprinkles. I personally drink it as a healthy tea in the morning or as 1 dropper, held under the tongue, for 60 seconds.

All of our mushroom tinctures:

• Triple extraction Mushrooms are fermented, to make the polysaccharides, Triterpenoids, and Alkaloids, more bio-available. 2. We do a hot water extraction, because polysaccharides are only water soluble. 3. We do 90 days in alcohol, because triterpenoids are only alcohol soluble. It takes us around 100 days to make a tincture!
• No gluten, No GMO’s, No pesticides or Herbicides
• Mushrooms are certified wild crafted and/or Organic

Ingredients: USP Grade Organic Cane Alcohol (no gluten), Filtered Water, Wild Turkey Tail, Organic Myceliated Brown Rice (food for the mycelium).

Also, there’s a great article in the huffington post about a recent medical study on it’s benefits for breast cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy.  

REFERENCES

1. Turkey Tail Mushrooms Help Immune System Fight Cancer | Huffington Post https://www.huffpost.com/entry/mushrooms-cancer_b_1560691
2. Medicinal Mushrooms (PDQ®)–Health Professional Version | National Cancer Institute. https://www.cancer.gov/about-cancer/treatment/cam/hp/mushrooms-pdq. Updated October 25, 2019.
3. Janjušević L, Karaman M, Šibul F, et al. The lignicolous fungus Trametes versicolor (L.) Lloyd (1920): a promising natural source of antiradical and AChE inhibitory agents. J Enzyme Inhib Med Chem. 2017;32(1):355-362.
4. Coriolus Versicolor | Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. https://www.mskcc.org/cancer-care/integrative-medicine/herbs/coriolus-versicolor. Updated April 12, 2019. Accessed March 25, 2020.