Unlike skinny trousers and ripped jeans, mushrooms have had a few years under the spotlight of holistic wellness, and rightfully so! Now before I get into the most recent trend driving adaptogens into pop culture, I want to get a little awkward fact out of the way. Even though mushrooms’ properties have only been championed very recently in the Western world, what we thought of as innocent and useless veggies, have been widely used in Ayurveda and Chinese medicine for AGES. Now that we have agreed on our inferiority as a culture, let’s get into mushroom coffee! 

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We all have found ourselves in the immediate regrettable position of drinking too much coffee. Be it because you had to pull off an all-nighter for our dissertation, because “your neighbours” were partying until 2am, or just because of our lust for life and the little details, we’ve all been tempted to call 999 or googling if you can get a heart attack in your 20s. Then you remember you’ve had two flat whites, one cold brew and an iced oat latte and can blame no one but yourself for the jitters and foggy brain. Next thinking you know, you’re getting a massive crash and feel like all your problems are unsolvable and getting anxious af. 

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It’s here where our little earth fungus friends come to save the day with their immune-boosting, stress-reducing properties. I think it’s fair to say that most of us drink coffee for a little energy boost and, even though it’s great for those mornings when we just can’t seem to wake up on our own, it can be counterproductive. Which is why pairing coffee with adaptogens is like pairing cowboy boots with boxer shorts: sounds weird but it makes so much sense. 

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So… adaptogenic coffee is, basically, just regular coffee that’s been infused with adaptogens: active ingredients in certain mushrooms that can have a big impact on how our bodies deal with stress, anxiety and fatigue. If this feels like a personal attack, you’re not alone: our entire generation (and the rest of the world, tbh) could use a little help with our management of stress, anxiety and fatigue.  

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Imagine drinking a cup (or a few cups) of coffee and getting A. All the energy that you need to keep up with life, and B. Getting all the calmness that you need to, well, keep up with life. Where do I sign?! 

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And because younger consumers (hi!) are craving more and more a balanced life, it’s only a matter of time before the market starts really jumping on the adaptogens wagon. You read it here first: soon enough you’ll see “Shroom coffee”, “Functional coffee” or “Calm your coffee down” at your local indie coffee shop full of beanie heads.

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