Is Chaga The Ultimate Cure In The Forest?
Ready for a deep dive into the wonders of Chaga and could it be the ultimate cure in the forest?
Chaga is a mycelial mass mushroom. It grows on birch trees like a sterile conch. The conch protrudes off of the bark and the inside can be a dark chocolate color, rich orange or even like a gold powder.
Chaga is the Russian word for mushroom throughout Indigenous Tribes and Siberian Shamans deemed it the mushroom of immortality.
My First Experience With Chaga
It’s almost like The Great Spirit positioned Chaga in such a way that man could not miss it. That it would be discovered through curiosity and given deep reverence once its qualities were experienced.
I recall the first time I sipped a warm cup of wild chaga tea. It was at Eden Hot Springs in Arizona camping and running the elixir bar at a David Wolfe Event some years back. I felt the rich, immune system boost straight away. It felt like a cleanser deep in the cells of my tissues.
Chaga grows remotely in these main areas of the world
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- Siberia
- Alaska
- Vermont
- Maine
- Canada
- Minnesota
The Siberians were the first main utilizers of Chaga. They found it kept them resilient to disease and allowing them to extend their life span.
How Do We Obtain the Max Healing Properties of Chaga?
A low heat extraction method keeps the potent healing modalities intact. What are some of these constituents?
- Beta Glucans
- Super Oxide Dismutase
- Beta Sterols
These compounds are like immune allies. The immune system is like a cleaning apparatus and Chaga can help it do what it does best….clean house.
From allergens, toxins, bacteria, heavy metals and parasites it will do all it can to allow its host to surthrive.
Here is an infographic I created to help you get the max potential from Chaga by making a medicinal tea.
The reason we want to do our best to keep the Chaga tea at 155 degrees as shown in the infographic is because of the enzymes that will be killed at higher temperatures.
Yes 118 is the true raw but we want to make sure no fungus grows either. Studies show that the certain rare enzyme known as ergosterol peroxidase is one of the key benefits of Chaga.
Essentially what this enzyme does in Chaga is to convert cholesterol to vitamin D. This is a crucial component in Chaga. It provides an abundance of absorbable Vitamin D in the cold winter months when the sun is less prevalent.
Vitamin D is a potent nutrient for our immune systems. Drinking chaga tea through out the cold months can be a powerful ally to keep you strong and healthy.
Chaga also holds Super Oxide Dismutase (the mother quencher of free radicals), Catalase a potent hydrogen peroxide quenching enzyme in the body. This enzyme is known to play a role in youthful hair color as we age.
Chaga as an Extract
You can also make a cold water extract as well to retain all the wonderful properties of this medicinal conch. It is not advised to use an alcohol extract because it kills these enzymes.
The taste of chaga is rich, dark and earthy.
What other constituents gives Chaga its Medicinal Value?
Do you know what the longest living animal is? You may have guessed it, the Tortoise. Well the highest levels of Super Oxide Dismutase are found in Tortoises. We now know that Chaga is high in this super enzyme.
The orac value of Chaga is right around 150. The Orac value translates to the anti oxidant potential it gives your system.
For example wild blueberries are some potent anti-oxidant givers however they hover at an orac value of 60. Pomegranate (150), Acai (250) and Oregano (3,000), Birch Bark (1300) are other top contenders for high ORAC values.
It is like the Chaga conch absorbs the antioxidant rich compounds off of the Birch trees, creating its own unique powers. This to me gives rise to the beautiful relationship between the tree and the conch.
It increases your bodies level of Glutathione which is one of the master anti-oxidants that help us remain youthful.
So could Chaga be the cure in the forest?
Let’s have a look at some of the diseases Chaga has been great at helping to disappear or simply assist the immune system to let go of.
Chaga as a Remedy for Disease
Autoimmune diseases are rampant in todays modern world. From Scleroderma, to lupus and thyroiditis Chaga has been documented to quench the free radicals caused by these diseases.
What’s more is creating a Chaga cream or salve and rubbing it on an infected area or even over the thymus or thyroid can provide great immune enhancement.
What other diseases has Chaga assisted our own immune system to get rid of?
- Cancers – used by Primitives, Russians and Eastern Europeans
- Tumors
- Bone Marrow Disorders
- Anti-Diabetic
- Bronchitis
- Eczema
- Anti-Viral
It has been shown to cause apoptosis or diseased cell death. Chaga naturally causes the nucleus of the cancer to pop out essentially.
I hope you will give Chaga a go. If you would like to learn about chaga and cancer you can read Cancer Ward by Alexander Solzhenitsyn.
Still skeptical? Note that Chaga has been approved for use in Russia as a Cancer Treatment since the 1950’s.
With all this said we an conclude that Chaga is a potent medicine to boost our bodies immune system.
If you decide to harvest your own Chaga remember to:
- Learn from someone skilled at it first
- Ask the tree before taking any medicine
- Leave a gift for the tree such as sage, wild tobacco or a special blessing
- Harvest responsibly leaving an abundance for nature and others.