Last updated: October 2026
There is almost no human evidence that mushrooms such as reishi, lion’s mane or cordyceps help menopause symptoms. Most findings come from cells and animals, and the few small human trials weren’t designed for menopause. No mushroom has an authorised health claim in the UK. For hot flushes, HRT, CBT and some non-hormonal medicines have real evidence.
This guide sets out what each mushroom has actually been tested for and in whom, answers the big question of whether mushrooms raise oestrogen, goes symptom by symptom, and covers safety with HRT and other medicines.
Quick answer: mushrooms and menopause
| Question | Short answer |
|---|---|
| Do functional mushrooms help menopause? | Not proven. There are no good trials in menopausal women |
| Hot flushes? | No evidence for any mushroom. HRT, CBT and some prescribed medicines work |
| Do mushrooms increase oestrogen? | No human evidence that they do. Lab results point both ways |
| Best mushroom for menopause? | None stands out. Ordinary mushrooms are a nutritious food |
| Safe with HRT? | Interactions haven’t been studied. Ask your pharmacist first |
Like a warm drink in the evening? Our Reishi Mushroom Adaptogenic Complex is a hot chocolate style powder made with cacao, reishi mushroom extract, maca, coconut milk powder and coconut sugar. It isn’t a menopause treatment, and the cacao contains a little natural caffeine.
Do mushrooms help with menopause?
Searches for “mushrooms for menopause” have soared this autumn, but the science hasn’t caught up with the marketing.
When we searched the medical research database PubMed in October 2026, we found no placebo-controlled trial of reishi, lion’s mane or cordyceps that recruited menopausal women and measured menopause symptoms. What does exist falls into three groups:
- Lab and animal only: reishi, cordyceps and button mushroom extracts have been tested in cells, and in mice and rats whose ovaries were removed to mimic menopause.
- Small human studies, not in menopause: lion’s mane has a handful of small trials in younger adults, older adults with memory problems, and one group of 30 women.
- Untested: hot flushes, night sweats, menopause weight gain and hormone levels in women have not been properly studied for any mushroom.
Curiously, the only placebo-controlled trial we found of a mushroom extract for “menopausal symptoms” was in men: a 12-week Japanese study of enoki extract for the so-called male menopause.
If you want to try something with evidence behind it, our guide to the best supplements for menopause ranks the options by evidence.
Mushrooms and menopause: the research at a glance
| Mushroom | What’s been studied | In whom | Result | Evidence strength | Safety notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Reishi (Ganoderma lucidum) | Cholesterol and liver fat; oestrogen receptors | Mice; breast cancer cells | Lower cholesterol and liver fat in mice. Mixed oestrogen effects in cells | Lab and animal only | Rare liver injury; bleeding risk; immunosuppressants |
| Lion’s mane (Hericium erinaceus) | Mood after ovary removal; mood, sleep and wellbeing; memory | Rats; 30 women; 30 older adults with memory problems; 41 young adults | Less depressive-like behaviour in rats; lower depression scores in women; better memory scores in older adults | Small human trials, none in menopause | Generally well tolerated in studies; stomach upset and allergy possible |
| Cordyceps (Cordyceps militaris) | Weight and belly fat after ovary removal | Mice and rats | Less weight gain and belly fat activity | Animal only | Little safety data; ask a pharmacist if on medicines |
| White button mushroom (Agaricus bisporus) | Aromatase, the enzyme that makes oestrogen | Breast cancer cells; mice | Extracts blocked aromatase | Lab and animal only | An everyday food |
| Grifola gargal (a maitake relative) | Bone turnover | Postmenopausal women, 2 weeks, no placebo group | A bone breakdown marker fell | Very weak | Eaten as a food in Japan |
| UV-exposed edible mushrooms | Vitamin D levels | Adults in general, not menopause | Raised vitamin D when levels started low | Several randomised trials | An everyday food |
For a wider look at each species, see our functional mushrooms guide.
Do mushrooms increase oestrogen?
No study in people has shown that eating mushrooms or taking a mushroom supplement raises oestrogen levels. Anything you read about mushrooms “balancing hormones” comes from lab work, and that work points in different directions:
- Reishi: a single compound isolated from reishi, called GL-1, behaved like a weak oestrogen in breast cancer cells and in computer modelling. Yet a whole reishi extract did the opposite in another cell study, turning down oestrogen receptor alpha.
- Button mushrooms: extracts blocked aromatase, the enzyme the body uses to make oestrogen after menopause, in cells and in mice.
- Lion’s mane: it contains small amounts of plant oestrogens, but it did not act like oestrogen on the womb or body weight of rats with their ovaries removed.
- Cordyceps: in rats already given oestrogen, a cordyceps extract made the womb heavier, which hints at some interaction in animals. It hasn’t been looked at in women.
Cells and rodents are a long way from a woman drinking a mushroom latte. If falling oestrogen is behind your symptoms, HRT is the regulated, tested way to replace it, and your GP can talk you through the options.
Mushrooms for hot flushes
There is no good evidence that any mushroom reduces hot flushes or night sweats; we found no human trial that measured them. The NHS describes options that do have evidence:
- HRT: oestrogen is the main type of HRT and helps manage symptoms.
- CBT: you may be offered cognitive behavioural therapy for hot flushes and night sweats.
- Non-hormonal medicines: a GP may suggest clonidine or an antidepressant if CBT doesn’t help.
- Everyday changes: light clothing, a cool bedroom, a fan, and cutting down on triggers.
If you like mushroom coffee or reishi hot chocolate, note that the NHS lists caffeine and hot drinks among possible hot flush triggers. If they set yours off, let your drink cool or have it earlier in the day.
Our full guide to hot flushes covers causes, triggers and every treatment option, and how long menopause lasts explains how symptoms tend to change over time.
Mushrooms for menopause weight gain and belly fat
“Mushrooms for menopause belly” is one of the most searched versions of this question, and it rests entirely on animal studies. In mice whose ovaries were removed, a cordyceps extract reduced weight gain without changing how much they ate, and reishi polysaccharides lowered cholesterol and liver fat. Nobody has tested either in menopausal women.
What does make a difference is less exciting but proven: strength training to protect muscle, enough protein and fibre, better sleep, and less alcohol. Our guide to menopause weight gain has a sample day of eating and a beginner’s exercise week.
Lion’s mane for menopause brain fog
Lion’s mane is the mushroom most often sold for menopause brain fog, but none of its human trials were in menopausal women. The main ones:
- Older adults with mild memory problems: 30 Japanese men and women aged 50 to 80 took lion’s mane tablets for 16 weeks. Their cognitive scores rose compared with placebo, then fell again within 4 weeks of stopping.
- Healthy young adults: in a UK pilot trial of 41 people aged 18 to 45, a single dose made people quicker on one attention test, with mixed results otherwise.
That’s a long way from proof for menopause brain fog. Our lion’s mane guide covers dose and side effects, and menopause brain fog explains why it happens and what helps, including when to see a GP.
Sleep, mood and anxiety
The closest thing to a menopause trial for any mushroom is a small Japanese study from 2010. Thirty women ate cookies with or without lion’s mane for 4 weeks, and the researchers measured menopause symptoms, depression and sleep. Depression scores fell in the lion’s mane group compared with their starting point, and a couple of items, such as palpitations, were lower than with placebo. The summary reports no change in the menopause symptom score. In rats with their ovaries removed, lion’s mane also reduced depressive-like behaviour.
For reishi and sleep, there are animal studies but no good human sleep trials, as we explain in reishi for sleep.
For poor sleep in perimenopause, start with the practical steps in perimenopause and sleep. If you’re feeling anxious or low, the NHS says CBT can help with low mood and feelings of anxiety; see can menopause cause anxiety?
Eating mushrooms in menopause
Everyday mushrooms are a useful food in midlife, even if they aren’t a menopause remedy.
- B vitamins: the NHS lists mushrooms as a good source of riboflavin (vitamin B2) and pantothenic acid (vitamin B5).
- Vitamin D: the British Dietetic Association includes some mushrooms among the few food sources of vitamin D. Mushrooms exposed to UV light make much more of it: in a German winter trial, UV-treated mushroom soup raised vitamin D levels about as well as a vitamin D2 supplement, and a review of 6 trials found the rise was clearest when levels started low.
- Easy to cook: they add bulk and savoury flavour to meals for very few calories.
Even so, the NHS advises everyone in the UK to consider a 10 microgram vitamin D supplement in autumn and winter, and mushrooms alone are unlikely to replace that. See vitamin D deficiency symptoms. For bones, the NHS also recommends calcium-rich foods and weight-bearing exercise.
Menopause mushroom supplements and gummies: what to check
Mushroom capsules and gummies labelled for menopause are now common in the UK. Before you buy:
- No mushroom has an authorised health claim. The Advertising Standards Authority points out that there are no authorised claims for mushrooms themselves on the Great Britain nutrition and health claims register.
- Find out where any claim comes from. If a label makes a health claim, it usually belongs to an added vitamin or mineral. For example, vitamin B6 contributes to the regulation of hormonal activity. See our vitamin B6 guide.
- Check the other herbs. Some menopause blends add plants such as red clover or sage, each with its own evidence and safety questions.
- Read the mushroom details: fruiting body or mycelium, extract strength, and how much is in a daily dose. Our guide to the best mushroom supplements in the UK explains how to read a label.
- Gummies: check the sugar and the amount of each ingredient per daily dose.
If you’re comparing plant supplements more widely, we’ve looked at the evidence for maca and for magnesium in menopause.
Safety: HRT, medicines and your liver
The NHS points out that herbal and complementary products sold for menopause are not regulated or tested in the same way as medicines, and that some can cause serious side effects alongside other medicines. Mushroom supplements fall into the same category.
- Liver: liver injury from reishi is rare but has been reported. In Thailand, a fatal case of liver failure followed a switch from boiled reishi to reishi powder. A 2023 case report described a 47-year-old man who developed hepatitis after taking reishi powder with alcohol, and recovered.
- Blood thinners: Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center warns that reishi can increase the risk of bleeding. Speak to your GP or pharmacist first if you take warfarin or another blood thinner.
- Immunosuppressants: reishi can enhance the immune response, so it may not be safe if you take medicines that dampen the immune system.
- HRT and other medicines: interactions between mushroom supplements and HRT simply haven’t been studied. Ask your pharmacist before combining them.
- Hormone-sensitive conditions: if you’ve had breast cancer or another hormone-sensitive condition, talk to your specialist team before taking any mushroom or herbal supplement.
- Pregnancy and breastfeeding: mushroom supplements haven’t been properly studied. We don’t recommend our products during pregnancy or breastfeeding.
Our reishi guide covers side effects and medicines in more detail.
Where our reishi drink fits
We make the Reishi Mushroom Adaptogenic Complex, a hot chocolate style powder with cacao, reishi mushroom extract, maca, coconut milk powder and coconut sugar. Stir 1 to 2 teaspoons into warm milk or a plant milk.
It isn’t a menopause product and won’t treat any symptom. Some women simply enjoy a warm, chocolatey drink as part of winding down in the evening. It is vegan and made in the UK.
The cacao contains a little natural caffeine, so it isn’t caffeine-free: if caffeine keeps you awake or hot drinks bring on flushes, have it earlier or let it cool. It’s for adults only, and if you take HRT or any other medicine, check with your GP or pharmacist first.
Our guide to mushroom gummies explains how to check the mg per gummy, the extract type and the sugar.
FAQs
Are mushrooms good for menopause?
As a food, yes: they provide B vitamins, and UV-exposed mushrooms contain vitamin D. As a supplement, there’s no good evidence that any mushroom eases menopause symptoms.
What is the best mushroom for menopause?
None stands out, because no mushroom has been properly tested in menopausal women. Lion’s mane has the most human research, but those trials weren’t in menopause.
Do mushrooms increase oestrogen?
There’s no evidence in people that eating mushrooms or taking mushroom supplements raises oestrogen. Lab studies point both ways: one reishi compound acted like a weak oestrogen in cells, while button mushroom extract blocked an enzyme that makes oestrogen.
Can mushrooms help with hot flushes?
There’s no evidence they do. HRT, CBT and some non-hormonal medicines have good evidence, so speak to your GP.
Is lion’s mane good for menopause brain fog?
It hasn’t been tested for that. Small trials in older adults with memory problems and in young adults found some benefits, but none were in menopause.
Can I take reishi with HRT?
Nobody has studied reishi with HRT, so ask your pharmacist first. Reishi may also increase bleeding risk and has rarely been linked to liver injury.
Sources
- NHS. Treatment for menopause and perimenopause.
- NHS. Things you can do to help menopause and perimenopause symptoms.
- NHS. Herbal remedies and complementary medicines for menopause symptoms.
- NHS. Other medicines for menopause symptoms.
- NHS. B vitamins and folic acid and Vitamin D.
- British Dietetic Association. Vitamin D: food fact sheet.
- Advertising Standards Authority. Shroom for improvement? Navigating the advertising rules for functional mushrooms.
- Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. Reishi mushroom.
- Nagano M et al. Reduction of depression and anxiety by 4 weeks Hericium erinaceus intake. Biomed Res, 2010. PMID 20834180.
- Anuar AM et al. Ameliorating effect of the edible mushroom Hericium erinaceus on depressive-like behavior in ovariectomized rats. Biol Pharm Bull, 2022. PMID 36184501.
- Mori K et al. Improving effects of the mushroom Yamabushitake (Hericium erinaceus) on mild cognitive impairment. Phytother Res, 2009. PMID 18844328.
- Docherty S et al. The acute and chronic effects of lion’s mane mushroom supplementation on cognitive function, stress and mood in young adults. Nutrients, 2023. PMID 38004235.
- Kusama K et al. Effect of Cordyceps militaris extract on visceral adipose tissue changes after ovariectomy in rodents. Int J Endocrinol, 2026. PMID 41626053.
- Jin X et al. Ganoderma lucidum polysaccharides improve liver metabolic disorders by modulating gut microbiota of ovariectomized mice. Int J Mol Med, 2026. PMID 42169656.
- Ye WY et al. Estrogenic activities of compound GL-1, isolated from Ganoderma lucidum. Nat Prod Res, 2021. PMID 32901516.
- Jiang J et al. Ganoderma lucidum inhibits proliferation of human breast cancer cells by down-regulation of estrogen receptor and NF-kappaB signaling. Int J Oncol, 2006. PMID 16865287.
- Grube BJ et al. White button mushroom phytochemicals inhibit aromatase activity and breast cancer cell proliferation. J Nutr, 2001. PMID 11739882.
- Chen S et al. Anti-aromatase activity of phytochemicals in white button mushrooms (Agaricus bisporus). Cancer Res, 2006. PMID 17178902.
- Harada E et al. Effect of the medicinal mushroom Grifola gargal on bone turnover markers and serum lipids in middle-aged and elderly Japanese women. Int J Med Mushrooms, 2016. PMID 27279439.
- Yamada S et al. Beneficial effects of enoki mushroom extract on male menopausal symptoms in Japanese subjects. Nutrients, 2025. PMID 40218966.
- Urbain P et al. Bioavailability of vitamin D2 from UV-B-irradiated button mushrooms in healthy adults deficient in serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D. Eur J Clin Nutr, 2011. PMID 21540874.
- Cashman KD et al. Effect of ultraviolet light-exposed mushrooms on vitamin D status: systematic review and meta-analysis. J Nutr, 2016. PMID 26865648.
- Wanmuang H et al. Fatal fulminant hepatitis associated with Ganoderma lucidum (Lingzhi) mushroom powder. J Med Assoc Thai, 2007. PMID 17621752.
- Guedikian R et al. Ganoderma lingzhi (reishi mushroom)-induced acute liver injury in the setting of alcohol use. Cureus, 2023. PMID 37885515.
This guide is general information, not medical advice. Always speak to a GP or pharmacist about menopause symptoms and before starting, stopping or changing any medicine or supplement. Evopure makes the Reishi Mushroom Adaptogenic Complex, which is not a treatment for menopause symptoms.
