Medicinal Mushrooms May Increase Stamina 27853

Medicinal Mushrooms May Increase Stamina

SUNGNAM CITY, Korea--Two varieties of medicinal mushroom may help delay exhaustion during exercise by promoting fat utilization and inhibiting lactic acid buildup, according to a study published in the July issue of the Journal of Ethnopharmacology (www.ethnopharmacology.org).

Researchers at the Korea Food Research Institute compared time to exhaustion and change in biochemical parameters during forced swimming tests between six groups of mice after supplementing each group with one of the following extracts for four weeks at 500 mg/d, respectively: cordyceps mushroom (Cordyceps militaris), Paecilomyces japonica (a medicinal mushroom), Phellinus linteus (a medicinal mushroom), reishi mushroom (Ganoderma lucidum), maitake mushroom (Grifola frondosa), ginseng (Panax ginseng), or distilled water (control group). The swimming times to exhaustion were longer in the cordyceps, Paecilomyces japonica and maitake groups than in the control group. Plasma triglyceride levels were lower in the treatment groups than in the control group; however, plasma glucose levels were not significantly different between the control group and each treatment group, with the exception of the ginseng group. Plasma levels of harmful metabolic byproducts (lactic acid and ammonia) were lower in the Paecilomyces japonica and maitake groups than in the control group. There were no significant differences in liver and gastrocnemius muscle glycogen content between the control group and each treatment group. The researchers concluded extracts of Paecilomyces japonica and maitake enhanced the forced swimming capacity of mice by increasing fat utilization and by delaying the accumulation of metabolic wastes.