Hericium Erinaceus is a Chinese mushroom with nootropic properties that is also known as Lion’s Mane or even Monkey Head Mushroom.
This medicinal mushroom is reported to have a wide range of health and brain benefits and contains over 32 different bioactive substances. It is an excellent source of the minerals Potassium, Zinc, Iron, Selenium, all main amino acids, and various types of polysaccharides and polypeptides.
Hericium Erinaceus also contains the compounds hericenones and erinacines which increase levels of Nerve Growth Fator (NGF) in the brain. This protein is involved in the generation, maintenance, growth and repair of neurons within the brain.
As such, Hericium Erinaceus is added to nootropic stacks (like Maven Labs Brain Stack) to improve brain cell health and as a neuroprotective agent.



- Increases Nerve Growth Factor
- Reduces nerves damage due to aging
- Supports memory & cognitive function
Hericium Erinaceus Mushroom
The Hericium Erinaceus mushroom or Yamabushitake has been used in traditional Chinese medicine for hundreds of years.
According to historical medical records, this supplement is considered to provide benefits to the kidneys, liver, spleen, heart, and stomach.It is helpful at improving digestion, restoring energy, strengthening physical condition, and inhibiting cancer.
Japanese scientists have also discovered it may have applications in treating Alzheimer’s disease, peripheral nerve tissue damage, and more. With long-term use, Hericium Erinaceus may improve memory function and lead to an increase in basal intelligence.
Hericium Erinaceus Effects:
One of the most profound ways in which this supplement works in the body is by stimulating something known as nerve growth factor, or NGF. Eranacine in particular is believed to influence the synthesis of NGF in the central nervous system. Not only can this slow the pace of neural degeneration due to aging or other environmental factors, Hericium Erinaceus is also believed to promote the generation of new neurons and nerves.
Using this nootropic consistently may serve to protect against cognitive dysfunction and age-related memory loss. Additionally, the remainder of nutrients in this supplement is unusually well absorbed by the body (unlike many other medicinal mushrooms). Working together, this also helps to restore the nerve sheaths surrounding your neurons and also improves the conductivity of signals generated by the various neurons and nerves.
Hericium Erinaceus Benefits:
Hericium Erinaceus has a number of immune boosting, restorative, and organ protecting effects.
The supplement stimulates the induction of interferons and helps to boost the white blood cell count. This is a key factor in supporting the body’s natural healing process.
They also serve to enhance the function of stomach mucus barrier, accelerate the healing of ulcers, and even reduce general inflammation.
Lion’s Mane also helps to regulate blood sugar and cholesterol levels. There is no sign of toxicity or and side effects in its scientific research. There is even evidence to suggest that it might be helpful at reducing allergies, or at least allergy sensitivity.
Given the mechanism of action for Hericium Erinaceus it seems natural that it offers benefits for a number of nerve disorders. This includes dementia, Alzheimer’s disease, multiple sclerosis, muscular dystrophy, neuronal degeneration, autism, and a few more. There is continuing research into its effects on obsessive compulsive personality disorder.
In China, this medicinal mushroom supplement is used to help treat stomach and esophagus cancers. It is thought to restore the mucus membrane of the stomach and other organs in order to help ulcers in not only the stomach, but also in the intestines (Crohn’s), gastritis, duodenum issues, and even atrophic gastritis, which is considered to be the most severe form.
Hericium Erinaceus Dosage:
There is no official recommended dosage for this supplement. On top of that, there have been very few actual human tests or studies on Hericium Erinaceus, and relying on animal research is tenuous at best.
One study used a dose of 1,000 mg three times per day. The actual supplement was a 96 percent purity formulation. Therefore, depending on the actual formulation you find the dose might need to be adjusted one way or the other.
Hericium Erinaceus is used in the Maven Labs Brain Stack product which contains 300 mg of the active powder per serving (2 capsules) or 150 mg per capsule. This would be a reasonable starting dose for new users of this supplement.
After some experience with the minimum effective dose, you may want to increase to using between 250 to 500 mg per day. Only after having taken the supplement for a while and becoming familiar with its effects upon your own body chemistry should you consider increasing the dosage.
Hericium Erinaceus Side Effects:
At this point in the discussion there are no known side effects of the Hericium Erinaceus supplement. Of course, you should still always be careful when taking something new.
A lack of research makes it difficult to provide conclusive evidence one way or another, but most individuals do not have any negative outcomes with this nootropic mushroom.
There was one report that suggested using Hericium Erinaceus may increase the presence of harmful enzymes in the liver after a month, so you may want to avoid using it on an everyday basis.
Hericium Erinaceus Review:
Hericium Erinaceus or Lion’s Mane Mushroom is a natural nootropic that has gained a lot of interested recently both from the medical community and the world of nootropic users. It poses multiple benefits for individuals who have suffered neurodegenerative diseases and it may even be able to prevent some of the damage associated with aging and Alzheimer’s.
If you are currently taking nootropics such as Noopept that are known to increase NGF then you may find that it does not add a lot of value to your stack. However, if you do not currently have any NGF-promoting agents as part of your brains supplement routine, then Hericium Erinaceus is one of the best to try.
If you are interested in trying a supplement that uses mushrooms to promote better health and brain function, check out Shroom Tech from Onnit Labs.
- Jiang S, Wang S, Sun Y, Zhang Q. Medicinal properties of Hericium erinaceus and its potential to formulate novel mushroom-based pharmaceuticals. Appl Microbiol Biotechnol. 2014
- Teng F, Bito T, Takenaka S, Yabuta Y, Watanabe F. Vitamin B12[c-lactone], a biologically inactive corrinoid compound, occurs in cultured and dried lion's mane mushroom (Hericium erinaceus) fruiting bodies. J Agric Food Chem. 2014
- Chen P, Yong Y, Gu Y, Wang Z, Zhang S, Lu L. Comparison of antioxidant and antiproliferation activities of polysaccharides from eight species of medicinal mushrooms. Int J Med Mushrooms. 2015
- Wang K, Bao L, Qi Q, Zhao F, Ma K, Pei Y, Liu H. Erinacerins C-L, isoindolin-1-ones with α-glucosidase inhibitory activity from cultures of the medicinal mushroom Hericium erinaceus. J Nat Prod. 2015
Article last updated on: March 13th, 2018 by Nootriment