What Dosage is Right?

This article may be a little disappointing for you but stick around until the end and hopefully you will be better informed to make the right discission for you.

The reason why I anticipate a level of disappointment is because we humans have been conditioned to like being told exactly what is best for us.

For example, your doctor will tell you what to take, when to take it, how many and for how long. This is because they make judgments on your behalf based upon your medical history, your gender, weight, height and evidence-based literature which suggests optimal dose-responses. I.e. The suggested dosage for optimal health response/outcomes.

They may not get the dosage right straight away of course and will typically want to review new (new to you as a patient or new to the medical market) long-term medications with you regularly to find the ‘Goldilocks’ level which provides the benefits with minimal side effects.

However, in the case of nutraceuticals such as mushroom supplements we can provide a guide but the onus falls into your hands to decide what is right for you and your goals.

Why is this?

Unlike pharmaceuticals which have multiple of millions of pounds/dollars to invest in research, nutraceuticals like functional mushroom supplements have no such backing. As a result, a definitive dose-response cannot be given.

There are professional mycotherapists or naturopaths who prescribe certain amounts of mushroom supplements for their clients but this will be based on their experience and, like medication reviews with your GP, dosages of mushroom supplementation will be also based your own feedback and how you feel or respond to the prescription given.

Mycotherapy

The term mycotherapy was first coined in 1997 by Prof. Jan Lelly who coauthored a book with B. Berg called Compendium of Mycotherapy. The introduction of this book reads:

“Over the past 18 years, this form of naturopathy, which is firmly entrenched in traditional European and Asian medicine for nearly half a century, has been increasingly corroborated through modern, scientific research, gaining considerable importance over time.“

Compendium of Mycotherapy

So, when we are asked by customers how much they should be taking of their chosen mushroom supplement we can only refer that customer back to themselves and suggest they start on a dosage within the range provided on our labels, 1 to 2 capsules 1 to 3 times per day, and adjust if needed over time.

If you are like most of us – if we are honest -, making health decisions without being told specifics by someone else feels uncomfortable, then let me help re-frame it for you.

And I honestly mean this in the most sincere way…

This is an opportunity to add more control over your personal health decision making.

Let’s face it, there is so much health information available it can be hard to make decisions on what is best for yourself.

There’s this diet and that diet, one person sings the praises of a particular exercise whilst another claims their method works even better. The health supplement market is no different and it can be almost overwhelming at times.

In an age of information overload it is so much more appealing and easier to outsourcing responsibility to someone else. But this is a step away from personal autonomy rather than towards.

It’s worth remembering that even small decisions on what you believe works best or feels right for you can have a knock on effect into far reaching aspects of your health and well-being.

You are of course an individual and should be treated like one by others and by yourself. You know your body, your feelings and personal circumstances better then anyone else.

You may be wanting to take health supplements to support and maintain general health or you may have a more specific health outcome in mind.  

Some people start off on dosages at the higher end of our recommendation of 1 -2 capsules 2 – 3 times per day and work backward to find what they feel is right for them. Other people will start at the lower dosage range and work upwards to find their sweet spot. Most however, will plump for somewhere straight down the middle and stick with that.

In my opinion the most important thing is to take them consistently because one thing we know for certain, there’s definitely no benefit if your mushroom supplements spend their life at the back of your cupboard.