If you discover a black, cancerous mass on a birch, you may be looking at a Siberian chaga mushroom. It can also, less commonly, be found growing ash, beech, elm or hornbeam.
Europeans have used chaga for centuries as a cure for digestive ailments, tuberculosis, and cancers of the liver and heart. [121]
The traditional use was to peel the black skin of the mushroom and then boil it into a tea. Being a compact and easily portable medicinal made it very valuable to healers throughout history.
Modern research on chaga has mainly focused on its potential application as an anti-cancer remedy. In Russia, this usage was already approved as early as 1955 to treat lung, stomach, breast and cervical cancers. [122]
A 1998 study on chaga extract showed that it did inhibit growth of cervical cancer in a lab. [123] And a 1995 study reported both growth inhibition and death of melanoma cells, also in a lab (in vitro). [124, 25]
Other research papers also confirm that some of the active compounds of chaga help retard the growth of cancer cells. [125, 126]
The black color of chaga is caused by betulin, a medicinally active compound that makes up 30% of the skin. [127] The lighter inside of the mushroom is rich in fungal lanostanes. So chaga tea may be more effective if made with the whole mushroom, including the skin.
Even better are chaga extracts that are made with not only the whole mushroom but also the mycelium, because the mycelium contains higher levels of medicinal proteins than the fruit body of the mushroom.
Other researchers have found chaga extract to be potently anti-viral. Two studies in 1996 found it to have an inhibitory effect on both influenza [127] and HIV. [128] Perhaps it does so by helping to stimulate the body's natural immune functions, something that was first confirmed in 2002 and then again in 2005, [25, 129] and which may also help explain the historical use of chaga mushroom as an anti-inflammatory. [130]
Alcohol extract of Siberian chaga has been shown to help balance blood sugar. [131] It is also a powerful antioxidant. [132, 133]
As an interesting aside unrelated to human health, a Quebec arborist uses a chaga poultice to cure chestnut blight. The trees later even become immune to the blight and resistant to future infections. [134]
Finally, in the book Mycelium Running, Paul Stamets lists the following additional areas of research on chaga with positive results: Bacteria; uterine cancer; liver conditions. [134]
Note: The statements on this page have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This article is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease. Never use any herb (or mushroom) except as advised by a licensed medical practitioner.
Credit: Thank you to Paul Stamets for source material. - 14130
Europeans have used chaga for centuries as a cure for digestive ailments, tuberculosis, and cancers of the liver and heart. [121]
The traditional use was to peel the black skin of the mushroom and then boil it into a tea. Being a compact and easily portable medicinal made it very valuable to healers throughout history.
Modern research on chaga has mainly focused on its potential application as an anti-cancer remedy. In Russia, this usage was already approved as early as 1955 to treat lung, stomach, breast and cervical cancers. [122]
A 1998 study on chaga extract showed that it did inhibit growth of cervical cancer in a lab. [123] And a 1995 study reported both growth inhibition and death of melanoma cells, also in a lab (in vitro). [124, 25]
Other research papers also confirm that some of the active compounds of chaga help retard the growth of cancer cells. [125, 126]
The black color of chaga is caused by betulin, a medicinally active compound that makes up 30% of the skin. [127] The lighter inside of the mushroom is rich in fungal lanostanes. So chaga tea may be more effective if made with the whole mushroom, including the skin.
Even better are chaga extracts that are made with not only the whole mushroom but also the mycelium, because the mycelium contains higher levels of medicinal proteins than the fruit body of the mushroom.
Other researchers have found chaga extract to be potently anti-viral. Two studies in 1996 found it to have an inhibitory effect on both influenza [127] and HIV. [128] Perhaps it does so by helping to stimulate the body's natural immune functions, something that was first confirmed in 2002 and then again in 2005, [25, 129] and which may also help explain the historical use of chaga mushroom as an anti-inflammatory. [130]
Alcohol extract of Siberian chaga has been shown to help balance blood sugar. [131] It is also a powerful antioxidant. [132, 133]
As an interesting aside unrelated to human health, a Quebec arborist uses a chaga poultice to cure chestnut blight. The trees later even become immune to the blight and resistant to future infections. [134]
Finally, in the book Mycelium Running, Paul Stamets lists the following additional areas of research on chaga with positive results: Bacteria; uterine cancer; liver conditions. [134]
Note: The statements on this page have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This article is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease. Never use any herb (or mushroom) except as advised by a licensed medical practitioner.
Credit: Thank you to Paul Stamets for source material. - 14130
About the Author:
Dr. Rafael has worked with natural health since finishing Chiropractic College in 1996. He currently focuses on medicinal mushrooms in partnership with Cordyceps Reishi Extracts, LLC, a U.S. business offering Chaga Mushroom Extract and much more. For the scientific references to this article, go to the Chaga Extract page and click on any number indicating a reference.
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