Mushroom coffee is gaining ground as a substitute for the morning caffeine fix.
While drinking mushrooms might not sound like the most appealing thing in the world, the trend has attracted attention for its array of health benefits and added energy boost.
Mushroom coffee proponents have said it promotes better sleep — plus provides more energy, improves focus, boosts the immune system and reduces inflammation, according to a Harvard Health publication.
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Some mushroom coffee makers also claim the drink can boost mood and gut health.
Most mushroom coffees do include caffeine but contain about half the amount of a regular cup of coffee.
The brew is typically made with medicinal mushrooms, including common varieties such as chaga, lion’s mane, reishi, cordyceps, king trumpet and turkey tail, Harvard Health noted.
These are considered adaptogens as part of the “adaptogenic mushroom coffee” infusion that’s meant to provide health benefits.
In a video posted to Instagram over the weekend, Fox News co-anchor Dana Perino of “America’s Newsroom” and “The Five” shared her love of mushroom coffee with “Fox & Friends” co-hosts Rachel Campos-Duffy and Charlie Hurt.
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“I’m a big proponent and I love amazing coffee,” Perino said as her colleagues took a sip.
“It’s like mushroom soup,” Hurt reacted with disapproval.
“You’ve just ruined it for me,” Campos-Duffy responded. “I was about to say ‘great.'”
Perino rated her mushroom coffee a 10 out of 10 — while Campos-Duffy gave it a four and Hurt gave it a one.
“Ask Martha McCallum, she likes it, too,” said Perino.
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“It kind of does grow on you,” Campos-Duffy said.
In a conversation with Fox News Digital, Perino detailed how she started drinking mushroom coffee about a year ago to replace English breakfast tea that she used to drink with honey.
“I don’t like how coffee tastes, but I love the scent of it brewing,” she said.
“I’ve cut out most sugar – and so I tried the Amazing Coffee brand. I used to use the collagen creamer when it was not sweetened, but they’ve changed that, so now I just include it with a splash of almond milk.”
Perino said her mushroom coffee mix gives her a bit of “get-up-and-go” energy in the morning.
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“Let the record show that, after the video, Charlie said the taste had grown on him,” she added.
Nutritionists also back the benefits of mushroom coffee.
Los Angeles-based registered dietitian nutritionist Ilana Muhlstein told Fox News Digital that many of these mushrooms are grown in “cold, harsh climates.”
Chaga mushrooms that are grown in Siberia or northern Canada must survive in 40-degree Fahrenheit conditions, she said.
The intense cold forces the mushroom to produce more antioxidants for protection, the nutritionist stated.
“This not only increases the nutrient density of the mushroom, but it takes on a powerful sense of adaptability,” she said.
“The reason it can be helpful to consume adaptogen mushrooms is that you are getting more powerful antioxidants in your system and perhaps a heightened ability to adapt to stressors in your life as well.”
For people who drink coffee every day or are chronically stressed, Muhlstein suggested that adding a mushroom complex can be “greatly beneficial.”
“Even if it’s just a placebo effect, which works for me,” she said.
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“When I consume adaptogens, I try to envision myself taking on their powerful survival skills and ability to handle challenges.”
Recent studies have proven the immune-boosting and metabolism-regulating properties of medicinal mushrooms, according to Harvard Health.
The mushrooms’ high antioxidant levels can also help slow down the aging process, though there has been no clinical research conducted on the impact of mushroom coffee.
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