The Entourage Effect with Mushrooms and CBD: How They Complement Each Other

Once the medical benefits of cannabis began to be apparent, research focused on identifying which chemicals within the plant were responsible for those benefits. Until that point, cannabis had enjoyed – if that is the word - a reputation as a “recreational” drug, meaning something taken for fun rather than to improve physical performance. That made it very different from, for instance, the steroids that certain athletes used to build muscle and make them more powerful, or the sorts of stimulants such as amphetamines, which boosted energy and made people more active and alert.

While cannabis may be on lists of banned drugs for sporting events, it is there simply because it is a drug, and the blanket ban that manifested itself with the slogan Just Say No continues to be imposed, to make it simpler for the young and impressionable to be protected from harmful substances.

Cannabis is not generally regarded as being helpful in a sporting context, its tendency to relax people and make them more easily amused is the exact opposite of the grim, non-nonsense focus required for most forms of sporting excellence.

When work began on understanding cannabis, aka marijuana, and its close relative, hemp, what was quickly accepted by the scientific community and grasped by the general public was that THC (tetrahydrocannabinol) was for fun, but CBD (cannabidiol) was its workmanlike cousin which had benefits in terms of promoting relaxation, reducing stress and generally being a balm against the ravages of the modern world. Explore the soothing properties of CBD with our mint CBD enhancer.

CBD is the Mr Sensible of the cannabis world. Its health benefits are increasingly well documented and words such as impairment, which occur when looking at the effects of smoking “weed” or drinking alcohol, do not crop up with CBD because it just doesn’t have those kinds of effects.

But there was another constituent that played a role in cannabis: in addition to the various other compounds known as cannabinoids, there were terpenes, present in the essential oils that were responsible for the smell and physical characteristics of cannabis oil.

The next step in the evolution of “medicinal” cannabis was the discovery that these elements could work well together. This is known as the entourage effect. For those interested in experiencing this synergistic impact, consider trying our stress relief gummies, which combine beneficial herbs and CBD for enhanced effects.

Similar research going on into the medicinal benefits of certain mushrooms was up against the same sort of opposition: mushrooms were food, and if they had any physical effect at all it was that some of them were psychoactive, producing feelings of distorted reality, most notably the ability of certain types to produce uncontrollable laughter. A physical effect, then, but not, perhaps, a useful one.

However, the scientists persevered and found that certain non-psychedelic species could help with many medical conditions, having a beneficial effect in reducing anxiety and depression, along with – and in some cases as a result of – their anti-inflammatory properties.

With mushroom research less advanced and less high-profile than its cannabis equivalent, it has taken longer to reach what might be called the mainstream of the alternatives. While the world was coming to terms with the fact that cannabis could be good for certain aspects of health, it was slower to appreciate the benefits of mushrooms. Eventually, the pieces began to fall into place. Just as the key terms with cannabis were THC and CBD, so with mushrooms it was psilocybin that was capable of having a significant effect.

As the two plants have much in common in this respect, mushrooms have found a place in the entourage. Those curious about the benefits of both CBD and functional mushrooms can explore our range of products, such as the focus CBD gummies which harness the power of CBG and functional mushrooms for enhanced cognitive function.

With research still ongoing it is unhelpful for the general population to wrestle with ideas such as that “cannabinoids such as THC bind primarily to the CB1 cannabinoid receptor; while CBD binds primarily to the CB2 receptor”, and “psilocybin binds mainly to 5-HT2A serotonin receptors”. Medical professionals sometimes hide behind this sort of language, knowing that it means nothing to the vast majority of the population. But that is the kind of information the experts are juggling with, and they do understand it; the person in the street just has to wait for specific, plain-English answers to medical problems to be gradually revealed.

Research into the entourage effect with cannabis and mushrooms continues, but certain combinations are becoming popular as the great American public becomes better informed and increasingly confident of the value of these innovations.

What Does the Medical Profession Think?

The medical community is not so much skeptical about new treatments as determined to wait until they have proved themselves before giving their approval. It all comes down to individuals: your doctor may be open to this kind of new thinking, or they may not. With research still ongoing they may urge you to stick to conventional remedies for whatever your particular condition is. On the other hand, if this is a longstanding situation and it is clearly getting you down, they may give their blessing to you to proceed with something that you will attend to yourself rather than through them. This can be especially appropriate when mental health is being impacted.

Online advice on combining cannabis and mushrooms, although well-meaning, often looks at the recreational side of it and therefore is not helpful in the medical context, but some of the more serious studies do take this into account, with generally encouraging remarks that always boil down to wait and see. This is a natural cautiousness, but as with so many things, it is for the individual to make a choice.

If something has not been conclusively proven to be effective but certainly not been shown to be harmful, you may decide to do some trials for yourself. What we are talking about here is the entourage effect, not the basic effectiveness of the individual components. Anyone who has used CBD and felt the benefits, or seen how Lion’s Mane gummies can have a tremendously positive effect will understand that good things are out there, and progress is being made. Long may it continue, and there are signs that the entourage effect combining both cannabis and mushrooms could be the way forward.