References & Clinical Evidence

MycoThrive™ Lion's Mane, the standardized extract used in Logic™, has been evaluated in two human clinical trials. Both are summarized below, including what each one measured, what it found, and what it did not.

Study One — acute effects of a single dose

Design. Randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled crossover trial in 40 healthy adults aged 18–50. Participants received, in separate sessions, a single 1,000 mg dose of MycoThrive™ Lion's Mane, 650 mg of guayusa extract, or a placebo. Cognitive testing (Go/No-go, N-Back, Serial Sevens) and subjective measures were taken at baseline, 60 minutes and 120 minutes after ingestion.

What it found. Compared with their own baseline, participants taking MycoThrive™ Lion's Mane showed significantly quicker reaction times on the N-Back working memory task at 120 minutes, and completed the Serial Sevens task more quickly at 120 minutes than at 60. On the Subjective Happiness Scale, two measures improved significantly within 60 minutes and remained improved at 120 minutes.

What it did not find. Lion's mane did not separate from placebo on the between-group comparisons. The improvements above are changes from each participant's own starting point. The guayusa comparator, which contains caffeine, scored higher than lion's mane on subjective ratings of mental clarity, focus and concentration — and was also the only arm that raised blood pressure. Lion's mane did not.

Citation. La Monica MB, Raub B, Ziegenfuss EJ, Hartshorn S, Grdic J, Gustat A, Sandrock J, Ziegenfuss TN. Acute Effects of Naturally Occurring Guayusa Tea and Nordic Lion's Mane Extracts on Cognitive Performance. Nutrients. 2023;15(24):5018. doi:10.3390/nu15245018 · PubMed 38140277

Funding disclosure. This study was funded in part by Applied Food Sciences, the supplier of MycoThrive™.

In the authors' own words, this was “the first study to examine the effects of LM on cognitive performance in healthy subjects.”

Study Two — 45 days of daily use

Design. A 45-day randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled parallel-arm trial conducted by the Center for Applied Health Sciences and published in the Journal of Translational Science. 87 healthy men and women aged 40–65 were randomized to one of three groups: 1 g per day of MycoThrive™ Lion's Mane fruiting body extract, 1 g per day of a commercial mycelium-and-fruiting-body blend, or a maltodextrin placebo.

What it found. After 45 days of daily use, the group taking the 100% fruiting body extract showed statistically significant improvements from their own baseline in day-to-day memory, concentration, mental clarity and focus. The same group also showed a significant increase in Faecalibacterium prausnitzii, a gut species involved in producing butyrate — an outcome the commercial mycelium blend did not produce.

What it did not find. On parallel-group comparisons, neither active formulation separated from placebo across the primary neurocognitive battery, safety blood panels, or serum biomarkers including BDNF and inflammatory cytokines. As with Study One, the improvements described are within-group changes over time.

Note on figures. We are in the process of obtaining the full published paper. Specific percentage figures will be added here once we have verified them against the publication rather than a summary.

How this applies to Logic

Both studies used 1,000 mg per day of MycoThrive™ Lion's Mane in powder form. Logic delivers 970 mg per day (485 mg twice daily) of the same standardized extract, prepared through a proprietary alcohol-free liquid extraction process. The ingredient and its standardization are the same. The delivery format and the daily total are not identical, and differences in form and dose may influence individual results.

How to read this page

Two distinctions do most of the work in understanding supplement research.

The first is within-group versus between-group. A within-group result compares participants to how they started. A between-group result compares them to the placebo arm. Between-group is the stronger evidence, and neither of these studies produced it for lion's mane. We report what was found rather than what would sell better.

The second is that an ingredient studied at 1,000 mg in a controlled trial is not the same as a finished product making a promise. Research describes what happened to a group of participants under specific conditions. It does not guarantee an individual outcome.

Scientific review

Logic's formulation and the clinical evidence above are reviewed for scientific accuracy by our scientific review panel, led by Robert Woodward, MD.

These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. Consult your healthcare provider before starting any new supplement.