Extraction Method:
The first thing is that
compared to last year, I got a little bit more sophisticated in my extraction
technique. I typically make my
liquid extracts as a mixed water/alcohol percolation, all the herbs ground up,
moistened overnight, and extracted together in one fell swoop over the course
of a day. Last year’s Jade Defense
veered from that protocol in that the aralia was extracted separately with pure
ethanol as a fresh plant, and also I used the reflux feature of my Soxhlet
Extractor to do a second extraction of the remaining herbs without added
solvent. I was quite pleased with
the outcome, and in fact caught only one cold last winter (I attribute this
defeat not to a failure of Jade Defense but to my staying up too late on New
Year’s Eve).
This year, based on the fact
that Jade Defense packs much of its immune-stimulating punch due to the
water-soluble polysaccharides in a few of its key herbs, I first performed a
pure ethanol extraction of the polysaccharide-rich astragalus and ganoderma
(more on the ganoderma in a minute), and the aralia as well almost as an
afterthought, to pull out ethanol-soluble medicinal compounds. Then, after pressing the dregs, I
performed a low-heat water extraction of the same herbs over several
hours. Finally I combined the two
extracts, with each other and with the standard ethanol/water percolation of
the remaining herbs in the formula (atractylodes, Siberian Ginseng, and
ledebouriella).
The result is a murky brown fluid
that, when allowed to settle, shows components of different densities forming
layers and clouds of various supersaturated solutes. Some people prefer their
tinctures cloudless and pristine, and in fact I usually adhere to this esthetic
standard in my medicines. But in
this particular case, I don’t mind at all because the result is so
worthwhile. The parts that settle
out do so not because they are somehow rendered inactive; they are simply
present in too high a concentration to be held in solution by the ethanol/water
mix of the final tincture. So, to
get the maximum benefit out of your polyssacharide-boosted Jade Defense, you
just have to remember to shake the bottle well before you take a dose.
Dosage:
Jade Defense is a formula that should be taken long-term to build the immune system. Last year, I fear there were people who got one two-ounce bottle, took it for two weeks, went off of it, and then got sick a few weeks later. So, to encourage you to do it right this year, Jade Defense REISHI is being distributed in four-ounce bottles. If you take the recommended half-teaspoon dose twice a day (in the morning and late afternoon, on an empty stomach), one bottle should last you about a month. If you prefer using a dropper for accurate dosing, transfer some of your Jade Defense REISHI to a dropper bottle AFTER SHAKING THOROUGHLY and take an equivalent amount (this should be about four full squirts, but you should calibrate this against a half-teaspoon baker's measuring spoon to make sure). I like to mix it with a little hot water, but it can also be enjoyed straight up or on ice.
Reishi:
The new addition to this
year’s formula is a medicinal mushroom most commonly known by its Japanese
name, “reishi,” which is the
Japanese pronounciation of its Chinese name, “ling zhi.” Its
Latin binomial is Ganoderma lucidum.
Reishi’s 43.3 Mb genome was sequenced earlier this year, yielding fascinating
new information on the fungus’ metabolic pathways that result in the over four
hundred bioactive compounds it produces.
Reishi holds a special place
in the world of Chinese medicine.
Since ancient times it has been revered as a medicine of almost
supernatural power. In fact, the “rei”
part of “reishi” (“ling” in Chinese) is a character that means something like “miraculous,”
“mysterious,” or “supernatural.”
And the “shi” part (“zhi” in Chinese”) is a special character that is
not used to refer to ordinary mushrooms but to semi-divine “excrescences” that,
according to Daoist scholar Fabrizio Pregadio “pertain to an intermediate
dimension between mundane and transcendent reality.”
What would lead the ancient
Chinese emperors and sages to hold this fungus in such high regard? One factor was its rarity (only in
recent decades has it been successfully propagated and made widely available to
consumers). Another reason is
surely its health effects. Reishi
was thought to confer longevity and even immortality on its ingesters. Finally, as with most “sacred” plants
used by humans, reishi-lovers probably appreciated its effects on their state
of mind.
Health:
Fortunately for us, two millennia
of anecdotal evidence about reishi’s health effects are backed up by much
modern research. Reishi is easily
one of the best-researched medicinal herbs in the world. What scientists have found is that
reishi’s health effects are produced by two main classes of compounds: triterpenoids
and polysaccharides.
The triterpenoids in reishi
are all modifications of lanosterol, which is the precursor of all steroid
hormones including ergosterol, which functions in fungal cell membranes much as
cholesterol does in animals. However, reishi produces more than 150 different
triterpenoids, begging the question: why?
Most likely, due to their bitter flavor, at least some of these
triterpenoids are useful as anti-predation chemicals (animals don’t enjoy
eating them). Others probably play
different roles in fungal biology.
Over many many generations of selection, the reishi mushroom has
produced a startling array of triterpenoids, which, lucky for us, exhibit a number
of health effects in humans. Chief
among these are liver-protectant, anti-hypertensive, anti-cholesterol, and
anti-allergy effects of a subset of triterpenoids known as ganoderic acids.
The second major class of
bioactive compounds found in reishi is the polysaccharides. These are extremely large macromolecules
that, together with abundant chitin, form the structural matrix of the mushroom’s body. These are the substances that makes a
mushroom rubbery/spongy, and the polysaccharides are also secreted by fungi and algae to help
them stick to surfaces they are growing on, and to keep them from drying out. Beta-glucans – one type of
polysaccharide found in reishi as well as in yeast, some grains, and in other
fungi – have been shown to have immune system stimulating effects. It turns out that a receptor on the
surface of human innate immune cells binds to beta-glucan, allowing the immune cells
to recognize it as “non-self” and mount an immune response. Because a part of these giant
polysaccharides is structurally similar to signature molecules found on the cell
membranes of bacteria, the body is in effect tricked into strengthening its immunity when there is in fact no actual threat. The end result is an increased ability
to fight pathogens and protect from disease. Animal studies show that
beta-glucans and a number of different polysaccharides in reishi exhibit other
effects, most importantly anti-tumor, radiation-protective, anti-inflammatory, and
hypoglycemic effects. While the
mechanisms underlying these effects are poorly understood, I conclude that
anybody wishing to strengthen their immune system, especially those fighting
cancer or trying to avoid it, stand to benefit from supplementing with reishi.
Finally, drawing more from
traditional therapeutic use than from contemporary research, reishi is an
excellent herb for the lungs. Like
most mushrooms, it is yin-nourishing,
with much of its yin-nourishing
effect centered on the lungs. This
makes it useful for many kinds of cough, asthma, and bronchitis, and also makes
it a good partner to the astragalus and aralia in Jade Defense, which
strengthen the qi of the lungs to
ward off cold and flu.
Mental Effects:
Reishi exhibits paradoxical
central nervous system effects.
Some people say it energizes them, while others find it sedating and
helpful for insomnia. I believe
this is because there are multiple (or at least two) substances in it with
different mental effects, and that some are soluble in alcohol and others in
water. Due to the structural
similarity of reishi triterpenoids to steroid hormones, it is quite likely that
one or more triterpenoids are stimulating to the human nervous system much like
steroids can be. So a reishi
extract that was made primarily using ethanol or another triterpenoid-friendly solvent could be expected to make you slightly wired. Whereas other substances extracted
using water may be responsible for any sedative effect. My friend Gus used to get a dark reishi
extract that was legendary for its sleepy feel-good effect (my buddy Andy Seplow has sourced some more recently that he says is comparable; if you’re
interested in sleepy reishi you should contact him).
This issue suggests a future
experiment in which I will separately extract reishi using alcohol and water,
and evaluate each for mental effects.
I will report back once these experiments are concluded.
In the meantime, beware that
THIS reishi extract that is included in Jade Defense REISHI may be stimulating
to some folks. I found this to be
the case during my first week of organoleptic product testing. I kept finding myself awake at night
having all sorts of deep and interesting thoughts. When it finally occurred to me that this was due to my evening
dose of Jade Defense REISHI, I reduced my consumption to one daily morning
dose, and was able to sleep again.
So if you find yourself suffering from insomnia after starting your
course of Jade Defense REISHI, try taking your second dose earlier in the day,
and/or reducing your second dose.
If this still doesn’t work, you can reduce your consumption to just once
a day in the morning, as I have done (your stash of Jade Defense REISHI will
also last twice as long!). The
jury is still out on whether the once daily dose will confer equivalent immune-stimulating
benefit – I suppose we will find out this coming cold season.
NOTE: when I say "mental effects," we're talking subtle. These are not the magic mushrooms favored by Deadheads and other psychonauts! I find the subjective effect of reishi to be, excuse the expression Buddhist literalists, to be very Zen: a centered alertness and creativity that keeps me feeling good and gets me through the day.
NOTE: when I say "mental effects," we're talking subtle. These are not the magic mushrooms favored by Deadheads and other psychonauts! I find the subjective effect of reishi to be, excuse the expression Buddhist literalists, to be very Zen: a centered alertness and creativity that keeps me feeling good and gets me through the day.
Rant:
But all this talk of steroids,
triterpenes, polysaccharides, etc. kind of misses the point. We always want to know what does what,
why does this stuff work, what molecules go to what receptors and what the hell
is going on here? That’s just the
way our minds work, and I think it’s great that there are people studying this
stuff. And it sure is fun tossing around words like "triterpenoid." But what I think is even
greater is that there is this mushroom that grows in the wild, that people have
been ingesting for many centuries because of what it does for their health and
because they like the way it makes them feel. And it’s not only this mushroom! There are thousands of plants and fungi and bugs and animals that have medicinal effects in humans, that people have figured out over
hundreds of generations. Why do we
insist on all these scientific studies to validate this stuff? Why don’t we trust that people got it
right? Why would they keep
ingesting some yucky-tasting fungus if it didn’t do them any good? And why wouldn't they notice what it was doing for them, and compare notes, and pass this information along? There’s an arrogance underlying the modern skeptico-medicalist presumption that much of natural healing is just old wives’ tales. In fact, there’s usually a good reason why
old wives tell their tales and old herbalists keep using their favorite herbs.
