Reishi: Amounts Used in Studies (Study Amounts, Not Advice)
The amounts of reishi used in published human trials, with product, length and people studied. These are study amounts, not advice, and they cannot be compared across products.
Content last updated . This page has not been medically reviewed.
Safety first. Supplements can cause side effects and interact with medicines. Read mushroom safety and interactions before you use any mushroom product.
This page is not dosing advice. It lists amounts that researchers gave in specific studies, for specific people, for a set time. They are not recommended amounts. What is right for a person is decided by a clinician or pharmacist, who can consider health conditions and medicines. Nothing here says to take, increase or cycle any product. Never change a prescribed medicine on your own; ask the prescriber.
Safety first. Liver injury has been reported with powdered reishi, including one fatal case. [1] Reishi can also interact with blood thinners and immune medicines. See reishi side effects and liver injury reports and reishi and medicines.
Is there an official amount?
Proper evidence not found. We looked for a recommended amount from an official body in the sources we read. The Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSK) reishi page has a dosage section that is available to OneMSK users only. [1] No official monograph amount for reishi was read for this page, and no safe upper limit was found.Amounts in published trials
Amounts are quoted as each paper reported them. The products differ (fruiting body powder, polysaccharide extract, dry extract, capsules), so the numbers are not directly comparable, and 1 g of one product is not equal to 1 g of another.| Study | Product, as reported | Amount and length | People studied | Main finding |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fibromyalgia pilot | Micro-milled fruiting body powder | 6 g a day for 6 weeks | Women with fibromyalgia | No significant between-group difference in mood scores [2]; fitness measures improved in a separate report [3] |
| Neurasthenia | Polysaccharide extract | 1,800 mg three times a day for 8 weeks | 132 people with neurasthenia | Lower fatigue and severity scores than placebo [4] |
| Advanced lung cancer, open-label | Aqueous polysaccharide extract capsules | 1,800 mg three times daily before meals for 12 weeks | 36 enrolled | No significant group change in immune measures [5] |
| Healthy volunteers, clotting | Capsules | 1.5 g daily for 4 weeks | 20 on reishi, 20 on placebo | No impairment of hemostasis tests [6] |
| Borderline blood pressure or cholesterol | Lingzhi | 1.44 g daily for 12 weeks | 26 randomized | No change in BMI or blood pressure [7] |
| Type 2 diabetes trials in a Cochrane review | Various | 1.4 g to 3 g a day for 12 to 16 weeks | Adults with type 2 diabetes | No clear change in HbA1c or cholesterol [8] |
| Healthy volunteers, short tolerance | Extract | 2 g twice daily for 10 days | 16 volunteers | No adverse effects observed [9] |
| Older women | Dry extract | 2000 mg a day for 8 weeks | 39 completed | Changes in T-cell function [10] |
| College students | Reishi supplement | 500 mg or 1000 mg a day for 30 days | 78 young women | Better stress and fitness scores reported at the higher amount [11] |
| Healthy adults, antioxidant | Capsule | 225 mg after lunch or dinner for six months | 42 healthy volunteers, crossover | Antioxidant markers improved [12] |
| Colorectal adenomas | Water-soluble extract of cultured mycelia | 1.5 g a day for 12 months | 123 treated, 102 untreated comparison patients from the same department (no placebo) | Fewer adenomas in the treated group [5] |
A 2025 meta-analysis of 17 trials covered 200 to 11,200 mg a day over 1 to 24 weeks, and rated the certainty of evidence as very low across outcomes. [13] Its authors reported that effects varied by dose and duration in subgroups, which does not tell a reader what to take.
What this page does not say
It does not say that any of these amounts is safe for you, effective, or better than another. It gives no schedule, no stacking and no timing advice. For a product you already have, read the label and ask a pharmacist; see how to read a mushroom supplement label.Frequently asked questions
How much reishi should I take?
This page cannot say. It lists amounts used in studies, which are not advice. A clinician or pharmacist decides what is right for a person.
What amounts did trials use?
They ranged widely, from 225 mg a day to several grams a day, with different products. [13][7]
Is there a safe upper limit for reishi?
Proper evidence not found in the sources we read.
Did higher amounts work better?
Not shown. A meta-analysis found effects varied by subgroup, and the certainty of evidence was very low. [13]
Do tea or coffee contain the same amounts?
Not described in the sources we read. See reishi tea, powder and coffee.
More details: evidence, limits and cautions
The details behind this page: cautions, limits of the evidence and where sources disagree. Open any note to read it.
How to read these numbers
- Different materials. A polysaccharide extract, a dry extract and a whole powder carry different compounds. Labels and extract ratios are explained in mushroom extract ratios and standardization.
- Different people. Trials in people with a diagnosis cannot be applied to healthy people, or the other way round.
- Different outcomes. A change in a blood marker is not the same as feeling better or being healthier.
- Short trials. Most lasted weeks. The longest we read was 12 months, in a comparison with untreated patients and no placebo. [5]
- Food versus supplement. See food portions versus supplement amounts.
Who should ask a clinician first
References
- Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. Reishi Mushroom (Information About Herbs, Botanicals and Other Products). Read 2026-10-23.
- Ganoderma lucidum Effects on Mood and Health-Related Quality of Life in Women with Fibromyalgia. Healthcare (Basel). 2020. PubMed 33265969. Read 2026-10-23.
- GANODERMA LUCIDUM IMPROVES PHYSICAL FITNESS IN WOMEN WITH FIBROMYALGIA. Nutr Hosp. 2015. PubMed 26545669. Read 2026-10-23.
- A randomized, double-blind and placebo-controlled study of a Ganoderma lucidum polysaccharide extract in neurasthenia. J Med Food. 2005. PubMed 15857210. Read 2026-10-23.
- National Cancer Institute. Medicinal Mushrooms (PDQ), health professional version. Read 2026-10-23.
- A prospective, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study of the platelet and global hemostatic effects of Ganoderma lucidum (Ling-Zhi) in healthy volunteers. Anesth Analg. 2005. PubMed 16037156. Read 2026-10-23.
- Study of potential cardioprotective effects of Ganoderma lucidum (Lingzhi): results of a controlled human intervention trial. Br J Nutr. 2012. PubMed 21801467. Read 2026-10-23.
- Ganoderma lucidum mushroom for the treatment of cardiovascular risk factors. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2015. PubMed 25686270. Read 2026-10-23.
- Safety and tolerability of Ganoderma lucidum in healthy subjects: a double-blind randomized placebo-controlled trial. Am J Chin Med. 2007. PubMed 17597499. Read 2026-10-23.
- Ganoderma lucidum dry extract supplementation modulates T lymphocyte function in older women. Br J Nutr. 2024. PubMed 38800991. Read 2026-10-23.
- Efficacy of Lingzhi or Reishi Medicinal Mushroom Ganoderma lucidum (Agaricomycetes) Supplementation on Psychological Stress and Selective Fitness Profile Parameters in Female College Students in West Bengal, India. Int J Med Mushrooms. 2024. PubMed 39241163. Read 2026-10-23.
- Triterpenoids and polysaccharide peptides-enriched Ganoderma lucidum: a randomized, double-blind placebo-controlled crossover study of its antioxidation and hepatoprotective efficacy in healthy volunteers. Pharm Biol. 2017. PubMed 28183232. Read 2026-10-23.
- The Nutritional Significance of Ganoderma lucidum on Human Health: A GRADE-Assessed Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Clinical Trials. Food Sci Nutr. 2025. PubMed 40510787. Read 2026-10-23.