Mushroom coffee has quickly become one of the hottest wellness trends on social media and food blogs. The concept involves adding reishi mushroom powder to your morning cup of joe to boost immunity and provide other health benefits.

Reishi can be purchased in powder form to mix yourself or as pre-mixed beverages. As part of its adaptogenic classification of herbs and mushrooms, reishi helps the body deal with stress while simultaneously balancing many bodily functions such as blood pressure, cholesterol levels and triglycerides, hormone regulation and plaque formation in arteries.

Mushrooms contain beta-glucans and polysaccharides which support the functioning of phagocytes, white blood cells and humoral immunity. Martin Powell’s book Medicinal Mushrooms: A Clinical Guide outlines these constituents of mushrooms as well as emphasizing their importance when selecting mushroom powder from fruiting bodies rather than mycelium as this contains less components that support these functions.

Some individuals may experience side effects from taking too much reishi, particularly when combined with caffeine or medications that suppress the immune system (corticosteroids or blood thinners). If this is the case for you, starting off by starting off slowly by starting with 1/4 teaspoon for three days then gradually increase up to full teaspoon if all goes as expected.