WHAT IS a CORDYCEP?
The Cordyceps Mushroom supplement comes from an Asian mushroom known as Cordyceps sinesis (C. sinesis) or (Dong Chong Xia Cao, 冬虫夏草) which sprouts from the body of dead caterpillar in the wild.
It is also known as the Himalayan Viagra “Yarsa gumba,” which translates as “winter worm, summer grass.
Cordyceps thrives only at altitudes above 3800 meters in the cold, grassy, alpine meadows on the mountainous Himalayan Plateau of Bhutan, India, Nepal, Tibet and the modern Chinese provinces of Sichuan, Gansu, Hubei, Zhejiang, Shanxi, Guizhon, Qinghai, and Yunnan.
Growth of the Cordcyeps
The fungus is the result of spores from C. sinensis entering the body of a live caterpillar while it is in the larval form of a large moth native to the region. Upon infection from the spores, strands of filaments called “hyphae” begin to sprout from the spores that then lead to the death of the caterpillar.
The hyphae grow longer and more numerous and develop into a relatively large stalk-like fungal fruiting body that emerges from the insect’s carcass after having sapped the caterpillar’s body of all nutrients.
Origin of Cordcyeps
Cordyceps have been used as food, medicine, poison, and in spiritual mushroom practices in religious rituals across the world since at least 5000 BC
It is found in the mountainous regions above 11,000 feet in the Himalayas. Every year the price of the cordyceps increased due to increase in demand.
The first written record of the Cordyceps mushroom comes from China. In the year 620 AD, at the time of Tang Dynasty (618 AD – 907 AD)
Difference Between Chinese And Bhutanese Cordcyceps
You can easily distinguish, Bhutan’s cordyceps from Tibetan and Chinese via the RED EYES, body color of cordyceps and line particles shapes in the body.
The cordyceps has a long history in traditional Chinese and Tibetan medicines for its usage in ancient times.
Yet, the cordycep found in the mountains of Bhutan are significant with its Red Eyes serving unique herbal benefits that are not found elsewhere. Also in Bhutan only natural cordcyep are collected mountains from 3500 meters and above and Royal Government of Bhutan is very strict and issues special permits to collect and export cordyceps.
Cordycep from Bhutan are also 100% genuine and very rare.
SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH ON CORDYCEPS
Cordyceps supports a natural increase in energy, endurance and stamina, and helps the adrenal system manage stress and fatigue
DNA sequence, bioactive components including nucleosides and polysaccharides in twelve batches of Cordyceps from Bhutan were firstly investigated, and compared with natural C. sinensis.
Results showed that the fungus of Cordyceps from Bhutan was C. sinensis and the host insect belonged to Hepialidae sp. In addition, nucleosides and their bases such as guanine, guanosine, hypoxanthine, uridine, inosine, thymidine, adenine, and adenosine, as well as compositional monosaccharides, partial acid or enzymatic hydrolysates, molecular weights and contents of polysaccharides in Cordyceps from Bhutan were all similar to those of natural C. sinensis.
All data suggest that Cordyceps from Bhutan is a rational alternative of natural C. sinensis, which is beneficial for the improvement of their performance in health and medicinal food areas.