3 Best Mushrooms for Brain Fog
If you’re anything like us, you’ve probably woken up on the wrong side of the bed before. It always seems to happen on days when you need to be on your “A” game, like when you’re delivering a big presentation at work or taking a big test in school.
Unfortunately, it’s not just physical fatigue that’s subtly sabotaging your day — it’s also the mental fatigue that comes with brain fog. Read on to learn more about brain fog, what causes it, and which mushroom supplements can help you stay focused.
What Is Brain Fog?
The term “brain fog” might sound a little funny, but it’s actually a pretty good description of what it feels like. Basically, this term is used to describe that feeling when your brain just doesn’t seem to be as powerful as it normally is.
Symptoms of brain fog include the following:
- Difficulty concentrating
- Feeling tired
- Slow reaction times
- Trouble with memorizing
- Muddled thoughts
- Forgetfulness
- Difficulty expressing thoughts
- Trouble with multitasking
- Lowered creativity
Even if you’ve never heard of brain fog, we’re almost certain your doctor has. If you have any of the above symptoms, ask your doctor about brain fog and they’ll likely have a few suggestions for you.
What Causes Brain Fog?
The human body is like a massive web. When one part of the body starts to falter, the effects can be felt throughout the rest of the body. Because of this, there are many possible causes for brain fog.
Potential reasons behind your brain fog include the following:
- Lack of Sleep: Getting a poor night’s sleep affects communication between brain cells, causing all of the above symptoms and more.
- Vitamin Deficiencies: Deficiencies in vitamins D and B12, omega-3 fatty acids, and iron can all contribute to brain fog.
- High Blood Sugar: Having chronically high blood sugar can cause brain shrinkage, neurotransmitter imbalances, and damaged blood vessels in the brain.
- Alcohol: Alcohol can cause dehydration, which can contribute to brain fog.
- Stress: Stress activates the fight-or-flight response, which uses up a lot of energy and leaves the body and brain feeling exhausted.
- Gut Imbalances: Leaky gut and imbalances in the gut microbiome can affect overall inflammation levels in the body and contribute to brain fog.
- Hormonal Changes: The hormonal changes that come with pregnancy, postpartum, and menopause can all contribute to trouble focusing.
- Cognitive Decline: Some symptoms of brain fog can overlap with age-related diseases like dementia, which is technically a separate health condition from brain fog.
- Health Conditions: Brain fog can also be a symptom of many health conditions, such as irritable bowel syndrome, hypothyroidism, depression, diabetes, and infections.
3 Best Mushrooms for Brain Fog
We’ll get to a broader list of ways you can minimize brain fog, but before we do, we’d be remiss if we didn’t put you on to some of our favorite brain fog supplements: medicinal mushrooms. If you thought mushrooms were just for adding a light umami flavor to your dinner menu, think again. Read on for our top three mushrooms for brain fog.
1. Lion’s Mane Mushroom
Lion’s mane mushroom (Hericium erinaceus) comes out on top in this category. This mushroom can help support the body’s production of nerve growth factor (NGF), which can positively support overall brain health and quick thinking.
Lion’s mane can also support a good night’s sleep, minimize feelings of depression and anxiety, and encourage focus, which can all help combat the symptoms of brain fog. And, if you’re not sure where to even start looking for a lion’s mane supplement, don’t worry — we’ve got you covered with our delicious and super convenient Mushroom Coffee+.
2. Reishi Mushroom
Reishi mushroom (Ganoderma lucidum) has been shown to improve symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease, such as cognitive decline. This mushroom can also stop the progression of Alzheimer’s.
This mushroom can also help minimize brain fog caused by excessive alcohol consumption. Obviously, this doesn’t mean you should go overboard and max out your tab. However, reishi might be the missing link you need to enjoy a night out with friends and still perform well at work the next day.
3. Chaga Mushroom
Finally, we have chaga mushroom (Inonotus obliquus), also known as the “King of Mushrooms.” “How did chaga earn this honorable nickname?” you might ask. The answer lies in its powerful antioxidants.
Free radical damage is one of the main causes of aging and can be a potential cause of cognitive decline and overall brain fog. Chaga is rich in antioxidants that can help fight free radical damage and keep your brain razor-sharp.
If you want a piece of this action, try chaga for yourself when you take our Mushroom Coffee+. This blend features both lion’s mane and chaga, as well as L-theanine, coffee extract, and collagen protein. It has the familiar taste of your favorite coffee with none of the side effects and even more benefits — so why not give it a shot?
4. Cordyceps Mushroom
Cordyceps might look like something out of a sci-fi movie, but don’t let the weirdness fool you. At its core, cordyceps enhances cellular energy production, specifically ATP (the molecule your cells use to do literally anything). More ATP equals more brain power, which means less staring blankly at your inbox wondering what year it is.
Studies show cordyceps can also boost oxygen utilization and blood flow, including to the brain. This way, your brain gets more fuel to think clearly, focus better, and resist that mid-afternoon fog. There's also early evidence that cordyceps may help regulate cortisol, the notorious stress hormone that can turn your brain into mush during busy weeks.
What Kind of Mushroom Supplement Should You Look For?
Unfortunately, adding mushrooms to your vitamin stack isn’t as easy as a simple trip to the superstore. Many brands sell mushroom supplements that are made with fillers or low-quality ingredients. At worst, you’ll end up emptying your wallet on a supplement that’s basically glorified sawdust.
Luckily, we know how to avoid these pitfalls. Here are a few things to watch out for when buying supplements so you can make sure you get nothing but high-quality mushroom coffee.
Fruiting Bodies, not Mycelium
Let’s talk about the difference between fruiting bodies and mycelium. Fruiting bodies are the actual mushrooms you’d recognize in the wild or on your pizza. Mycelium, on the other hand, is the underground root-like network that supports the fruiting bodies.
While both are part of the mushroom, fruiting bodies are where the real magic happens. These have higher concentrations of active compounds like beta-glucans, triterpenes, and other nootropic compounds.
Unfortunately, many mycelium-based products are grown on grains like rice or oats. They also often contain more filler than fungus because their hair-thin fibres are impossible to separate from the grains.
Even more unfortunately, many brands that use mycelium for their products use deceptive marketing practices to make their products seem just as good as (or even better than) the brands that try to do it right. They use terms like “mycelium grown on grain,” “mycelial biomass,” and "full spectrum mushrooms.”
However, these are all just fancy ways of saying they’re offering a lower quality product. You won’t find any of this mycelium nonsense in our mushroom blends, though — just 100% fruiting bodies.
Wood-Grown, not Grain-Fed
Just like wine tastes better when the grapes are grown in good soil, mushrooms are more potent when they’re grown on natural wood substrates, not grain. This is because mushrooms pull nutrients from their environment.
When grown on hardwood, they develop the full spectrum of beneficial compounds they evolved with in nature. You’ll get more beta-glucans, more triterpenoids, more of everything you actually want.
Grain-fed mushrooms, on the other hand, are kind of like fast food. They grow quickly and cheaply, but their nutritional profile suffers. You're not just what you eat — your mushrooms are too.
If you're popping a mushroom supplement for brain fuel, make sure it's coming from mushrooms that lived their best life. Think of it as the difference between a grass-fed steak and a McDonald’s chicken nugget. That’s why our mushrooms are all grown on trees and harvested sustainably.
Extracted, not Powdered
Whole mushroom powders are often just dried and pulverized mushrooms or mycelium. This might be fine if you’re going for fillers (like many brands are), but not so much if you're chasing results.
This is because mushrooms hide their bioactive compounds behind a thick wall called chitin, and without proper extraction, the compounds stay locked away even through the digestive process. Extracts, on the other hand, go through a hot water or dual-extraction process (like the one we use) to pull out the active compounds so your body can actually use them.
That means more beta-glucans, more neuroprotective compounds, and more value per scoop. Plus, extracts are easier to absorb, making them faster-acting and more efficient.
So next time you’re comparing labels, remember that it’s not about how much mushroom you’re getting, it’s about how much of the right stuff is making it into your bloodstream.
Third-Party Tested
When it comes to supplements, third-party testing is the gold standard. Anyone can slap “high quality” on a label, but only independent testing verifies what’s actually inside. That means checking for active compound levels, verifying purity, and ensuring there are no shady contaminants like heavy metals, pesticides, or “mystery mushroom” filler.
Without third-party testing, you're basically taking a supplement on a pinky promise. With it, you know you're getting exactly what you paid for when it comes to potency, safety, and effectiveness.
At Everyday Dose, we don’t play mushroom roulette. Our products are rigorously tested by labs for beta glucan content, mycotoxins, heavy metals, allergens, and mold.
How Can You Start Taking Functional Mushrooms?
Getting started with functional mushrooms used to mean taking capsules, tinctures, or tasting like you licked the forest floor. But with our Mushroom Coffee+, you can literally just stir and sip. One scoop in hot water and you’ve got focus, energy, and clarity without the jitters or crash.
If you want to get fancy, you can use it to make a latte, a dreamy mocha, or pour it over ice for a delicious iced mushroom coffee. You can also blend it into your morning smoothie, stir it into overnight oats, or sneak it into baked goods for a stealthy wellness boost. It's versatile, delicious, and easier than getting in your car and driving to the cafe.
Functional mushrooms don’t have to be complicated or taste like dirt. We made our coffee tasty, powerful, and mixable AF, so supporting your brain, mood, and energy is as simple as your morning cup.
Additional Supplements for Brain Fog
We definitely love mushroom supplements for brain fog, but that’s just because we’ve seen the benefits for ourselves. If you’re looking to amp up your anti-brain fog regimen, there are some great supplements you can take alongside functional mushrooms.
These include the following:
- Vitamin A
- Vitamin D
- Vitamin C
- Vitamin E
- Omega-3s
- Ashwagandha
- L-theanine
- Magnesium
- B-vitamins
- Zinc
- Ginseng
The Bottom Line
If you’ve ever felt a little groggy and discombobulated after a poor night’s sleep, then you’re probably familiar with brain fog. This set of symptoms might not seem super serious, but it can have ripple effects throughout almost every area of your life. Luckily, you can beat brain fog thanks to the help of some unlikely ingredients: medicinal mushrooms.
At Everyday Dose, we know how frustrating brain fog can be. In fact, our founder first developed our Mushroom Coffee+ as a way to manage his own brain fog. Once we saw how good the benefits could be, we knew we had to share our formula with the world. If you want to try the benefits for yourself, shop all of our mushroom blends to find one that suits your needs today!
Sources:
Cordyceps as an Herbal Drug - Herbal Medicine | NCBI Bookshelf
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