Lion's Mane Coffee

Lion's mane (Hericium erinaceus) is the mushroom most often linked to focus and memory in mushroom coffee marketing.

The key study

In a double-blind, placebo-controlled trial, 30 Japanese adults aged 50–80 with mild cognitive impairment took dried lion's mane powder or placebo for 16 weeks. The lion's mane group improved on cognitive scores at weeks 8, 12, and 16, and scores declined after they stopped (Mori et al., 2009, PubMed).

What that means for your coffee

• It was one small study in older adults with cognitive impairment, not healthy young people.
• Many mushroom coffees don't disclose how much lion's mane is in a serving, and blends often provide only a few hundred milligrams per mushroom (our Ryze analysis).
• Look for disclosed lion's mane mg per serving, and whether it's fruiting body or mycelium. Fruiting body vs mycelium →