All our mushroom extracts are from the leading supplier of organic mushroom extracts: Nammex. They have over 40 years of mushroom growing experience and were one of the first companies to bring organic medicinal mushroom extracts to North America.

Their ingredients go through rigorous quality control and are tested twice for heavy metals, agricultural chemicals and microbial contamination to ensure they meet all standards for dietary supplements of this nature. All of their extracts are made from certified organic mushrooms (fruiting bodies), organically grown or wildcrafted from deep within mountain regions of China.

Mushrooms used for dietary supplements are seldom grown in North American since it is too expensive. In fact, China is the leading supplier of mushrooms worldwide and supplies over 90% of the world’s mushrooms. It has a rich history of mushroom use as both food and medicine and is the birthplace of mushroom cultivation with shiitake being farmed in the early 1200s. China is one of the only places in the world where you can get 100% organic mushroom (fruiting body) extracts that can be sold at an affordable price.

The products are identical. The only difference is how you want to consume them.

2 capsules is equivalent to roughly a 1/2 tsp of the mushroom powders.

In terms of potency and efficacy, both the capsules and powders are equally effective at delivering.

The capsules are great for travel purposes, where as the powder can be great added to recipes or mixed in coffee, tea or bone broth.

Natural ingredients don’t always flow smoothly through processing equipment and capsule manufacturers need to utilize other ingredients in order to fill capsules. It is common practise for encapsulation facilities to require the use of other ingredients.

We have worked closely with our encapsulation partners to make sure that only what is added is absolutely necessary to create the capsules."

It is extremely important to distinguish the difference between mushrooms and mycelium.

Mushrooms are the "fruit" and reproductive stage of these organisms while the mycelium is the root system or "body" of the fungus.

Mushrooms contain much higher levels of active compounds like beta-glucans and have a very large body of research. They have also been consumed for thousands of years as food and many health benefits have been shown from just mushroom consumption.

Mycelium is commonly grown on a grain substrate and this grain cannot be separate from the mycelium so much of the final product is actually grain with no mushrooms present. This shows up in high amounts of starch and low amounts of active compounds like beta-glucans.

For these reasons, Real Mushrooms only utilizes mushrooms in all of their products with verified levels of the important active compounds like beta-glucans and always guarded against starchy fillers like grain.

While we do not test every production lot for oxalates, our preliminary data shows oxalate content in the 2-3% range; meaning 20-30mg per serving.

There are many foods which contain higher amounts of oxalates than chaga (Ex. spinach, french fries, almonds, peanuts, chocolate). If you are on a low oxalate diet protocol or prone to oxalate kidney stones, it might be wise to consult your health practitioner.

Like any supplement, there are risks, especially for those with pre-existing health conditions, specifically any kidney disease, those with low calcium intake and possibly those with past antibiotic use.

If you are at all concerned with oxalates, consider seeking guidance from a medical professional just in case.

Chaga contains betulin/betulinic acid and melanin, which may aid in skin health, gut, joint health and much more.

It contains SOD (super-oxide dismutase), which is a powerful enzyme that may lessen oxidation in the body.

Chaga has also been studied quite extensively to aid in gut health and skin related challenges.