FUNGI. Allies and Guardians of all the Biological Realms of Life

• December 17, 2022
• Fungi Hunter
• no comments

I cannot help but ponder what fungi mean to the earth and how they relate to us as humans. Fungi are inherently connected to every biological system on this planet. They exist as an inseparable part of us all. Pulling back the veil and sharing this gift of sight into this incredible hidden world, by my definition, is the greatest example of “Pay it Forward” I could ever do. My role is to share the knowledge and insights I’ve gained about this kingdom, in a simple and easy-to-understand way, sharing real-life use and experiences, in regards to the addition of fungi as food and medicine in my life, the lives of my family, and my friends. As you continue to read, if you don’t already know, you will soon see how fungi permeate every aspect of our daily lives.

Fungi are everywhere. There in the air, in our mouths and in our bodies, on our skin, hair, and nails, in the soil and seeds we sow, plants we grow, and in the food, we make and consume. The body, processing this food and turning it into energy and readily available nutrients, as well as the waste products from these processes, all have a fungi association in one-way shape, or form. It would literally take hundreds of pages to describe in detail the role that fungi play in every single process I just described above and that’s just the things we know about fungi. There’s so much more we don’t. Some scientists have estimated there to be over 6  million species of fungi in the world. We have identified approximately 150,000 species with only 10% of those being mushrooms. The more I learn about this amazing sentient organism, the more I want to know and share the information with you, to help improve your quality of life.

Every single person who is reading this, regardless of culture, ethnicity, and race, all have one undeniable truth that connects them all, we are all one with the fungi! Think about that for a moment. Out of all the things on this planet, they are ever present in every aspect of our lives.

The word fungi describe everything in the 5th Kingdom. This includes names you’re familiar with (yeasts, molds, and mushrooms). Most of you, even if you don’t know specifically what yeasts are, I’m sure you’ve eaten one of the many foods that yeast plays a role in your life. Did you wake up this morning and have coffee or tea? Maybe you had a hot chocolate? All three of these well-known foods are consumed in large quantities daily all over the world. When farmers harvest, the naturally present fungi (yeasts) are responsible for the flavor profiles and characteristics created by the fermentation processes that the beans and leaves go through.

What common foods are created from fermentation with fungi? Just a few you know, coffee, tea, chocolate, pickles, olives, fish sauce, balsamic vinegar, tempeh, soy sauce, fermented tofu, kimchi, sauerkraut, kombucha, and kefir. What about beer, wine, sake, and your favorite spirits? Perhaps you’ve heard of blue cheese? The blue veins you see in the cheese are made by a fungus (mold) called Penicillin Roquefort. Ever heard of Citric acid? If you look on the label of most foods, you will find it there as a preservative to extend the shelf life, as well as improve the texture and flavor of a company’s food products. The discovery of a fungus (mold) called Aspergillus niger, when fermented, can produce a large quantity of Citric acid. To this day over 100 years later, it is still being created this way. These and many more foods are all derived from fermenting various types of fungi.

In 1928, Alexander Fleming, while conducting research on a bacteria called Staphylococcus aureus, commonly known as a “Staph”, that causes skin infections, discovered a compound from a competing mold called Penicillium notatum, that had killed the bacteria. Most people have come to know the common name Penicillin, as it applies to antibiotics, statins, like lovastatin, derived from Aspergillus terreus for lowering cholesterol, and even immunosuppressant drugs used in organ transplants like Cyclosporin, isolated from the fungus Tolypocladium inflatum. Fungi and mushrooms have a vast array of pharmacologically active compounds that have been turned into some of the life-saving drugs we know today. This is really only scratching the surface of the role that all fungi have played in the development of societies as we know them.

The journey down the rabbit hole into this fascinating world has only just begun. There’s much to share. Thank you for taking the time to read this. I’m grateful you stopped by.

The Kingdom of Fungi awaits!

Peace, Love, and Mushrooms

Fungi Hunter