Healing Mushrooms [Paperback]

Georges Halpern (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 1, 2007

For over five thousand years, mushrooms have been used as an effective medicine. Now, researchers are rediscovering the amazing value of these traditional medicinals as well as uncovering new benefits--benefits that can safely and naturally improve your health and well-being. Written by Dr. Georges M. Halpern, a top medical scientist, this easy-to-use guide provides a fresh look at the history and uses of eight major healing mushrooms: maitake, reishi, shiitake, Cordyceps sinensis, Agaricus blazei, Phellinus linteus, Trametes versicolor, and Hericium erinaceus. The book begins by describing how ancient cultures of the East and West utilized mushrooms to combat the ravages of disease. It then looks at how modern science has refocused its attention on the healing properties of mushrooms and, along the way, discovered some wonderful new properties of these gifts of the earth. The chapters that follow examine the folklore, the health benefits, and even the culinary uses of each of the mushrooms under discussion. Included are detailed instructions on how to buy, store, and use these products, as well as a helpful, up-to-date resource section offering important consumer information. From their use as a cholesterol-lowering agent to their anti-tumor activities to their promise of reversing Alzheimer's, mushrooms are some of nature's greatest wonders. Let Healing Mushrooms change the way you think about this marvelous medicinal.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Georges M. Halpern, MD, PhD, attended medical school at the University of Paris, France. He subsequently received a PhD from the Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Paris XI--Chatenay Malabry. A Fellow of the American Academy of Allergy and Immunology, Dr. Halpern is board certified in internal medicine and allergy, and is Professor Emeritus of Medicine at the University of California--Davis. He is currently Distinguished Professor of Pharmaceutical Sciences at the Hong Kong Polytechnic University.

Product Details

• Paperback: 208 pages
• Publisher: Square One Publishers (January 1, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0757001963
• ISBN-13: 978-0757001963
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #374,463 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Medicinal Mushrooms Revealed, February 19, 2007

By 

John Holliday "Mushroom John" (California) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Healing Mushrooms (Paperback)

Dr. Halpern has presented the latest finding about Medicinal Mushrooms in this book. There has been a tremedndous amount of research done in this field since the previous books on the subject were published, and Dr. Halpern has reported on all these research trials. He has a very easy to read style, and has that rare ability to convey complex information in an easy to understand format. I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in this field.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Interesting informatio and history about mushrooms, August 28, 2011

By 

Gert Bo Thorgersen "GBT" (Thailand) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Healing Mushrooms (Paperback)

Here in Thailand each day in the year we out in the nature can go searching for mushrooms or buy it fresh on the markets so I'm getting used to a couple of times each week to get mushrooms. And especially this year in which we have had more rain than normally for the Rainy Season we have seen more mushrooms on the market. Opposite to this, in Denmark from where I come, we only are used to in the month of September having the possibility to out in the nature go searching after the mushrooms.

So I had to by a book about mushroom, and I have been very delighted by reading this book. Among other the book is fine by having 15 good pictures showing the mushrooms about whish there are written the most.

On the front side among other it's mentioned that "Healing Properties of Medical Mushrooms", but in the writing there are more about this, the medical, than I had sought, and especially much interesting writing concerning Cancer. And about this, that is the Anticancer drugs, I discovered that the Lentinan, which comes from the Shiitage mushroom, is the third most widely prescribed Anticancer drug in the world, but being rather unknown in USA. And that nearly all of the mushrooms which are being mentioned in the book are helping in the fighting of Cancer, and besides also fighting the Cholesterol. And especially out here in Asia this has been known for thousands of years. But there are also mentioned much research done during the last 40 years, especially in China and Japan. So after finishing the book I among other went into Google searching for more information's especially about Lentinan as my wife have had breast cancer and are using the Femaron drug which have mane bad side effects.

And about each of the mushroom mentioned in the book there are stated many names where the names tells what was thought about them among other for against what they should help. And one of them, the strange looking Cordyceps sinensis, which was believed to in the 2 seasons, the 2 half of the years, changing between being a worm and being a stalk and then back again. And were now one research person believes that it's composed of tree different organisms!

And concerning the mushroom in nature there are also interesting information as for example mentioning the mushroom beneath the soil of Michigan which is 1.500 years old covers parts of 35 acres, and weights 100 tons! And that if we did not have the mushrooms on the earth then live, as we know it, would not exist as it is the mushrooms that take care of all that have died.

And the writer also are reminding us about the frozen 5.300 year old mummy which in 1991 was discovered in the Tyrolean Alps, and here comes with some interesting discoveries among other that the mummy brought with him fungi, mushroom, as a medicine kit, and for what it was used.

And the book also starts interestingly with the writer telling when under The Second Word War he with his father, who was a mycologist, were out searching mushroom when they were close to starvation, and by that caught his interest concerning mushrooms.

And I think that in the future we in the Vest will start using mushroom more both at eating and concerning health. For the health that is discovering more in the mushroom for using in drugs and thereby getting drugs without the many bad side effects which we know from the clearly industrial drugs.