Ingredient guide

Maitake: the dancing mushroom

Maitake gets its nickname from Japanese folklore, where foragers were said to dance when they found one. It is naturally rich in beta glucans.

  • Grifola frondosa
  • The dancing mushroom
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  • The dancing mushroomAlso known as
  • Starshroooms · 10:1 extractIn our gummies
  • Animal and lab studiesEvidence so far

What is Maitake?

Maitake grows in large, frilly clusters at the base of oak trees, and in English it is often called hen of the woods because it looks like a bird fluffing its feathers. It is prized in Japanese cooking.

How Maitake has been used

In Japan it has been eaten and traded for centuries, and wild clusters are said to have been worth their weight in silver. Today it is valued for its beta glucans, the compounds functional mushrooms are best known for.

Maitake is best known for its beta glucans. Most studies so far are in animals and in the lab.

What the research says

The studies so far.

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  • Animal study

    Immune-enhancing effects of Maitake (Grifola frondosa) and Shiitake (Lentinula edodes) extracts

    Vetvicka and Vetvickova, 2014

    Several markers of immune activity increased compared with mice that were not given the extracts.

    Read on PubMed (opens in a new window)

Studies looked at Maitake on its own, often in different forms and amounts, and did not test our gummies. Descriptions of traditional use are not health claims.

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Where to find it

Maitake in Starshroooms.

Starshroooms use a 10:1 Maitake extract as part of the six mushroom blend.

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Maitake, answered.

Can you eat Maitake?

Yes. It is a popular cooking mushroom, often sold as hen of the woods.

What are beta glucans?

A type of fibre found in the cell walls of mushrooms, oats and barley.

When should I take Maitake?

Any time of day. It is part of the Starshroooms blend.

More ingredient guides.