Tiger’s Milk

Tiger’s Milk Mushroom History

Tiger’s Milk (Lignosus rhinocerotis) grows in the tropical rainforests of Southeast Asia. Its name comes from local legend, which says the mushroom sprouts from the spot where a tigress spilled milk while nursing her cubs. The medicinal part is not the cap but the sclerotium, a dense underground tuber the fungus forms below the ground.

The wild mushroom is rare, and for a long time foragers had to search the rainforest for it, which kept supply small and unreliable. That changed in the late 2000s, when researchers worked out how to cultivate the sclerotium. Steady, consistent material opened the door to modern study, and research since then has looked closely at its unique polysaccharide and protein compounds.

Tiger’s Milk Mushroom Uses

In traditional practice, Tiger’s Milk was used as a general tonic and especially for respiratory support, including coughs and seasonal lung complaints. Modern research has continued in that direction, with studies looking at the sclerotium’s role in respiratory and immune health. This makes it a distinctive ingredient for formulators seeking something beyond the more familiar functional mushrooms.

Our mushroom extracts are commonly used as nutraceuticals and dietary supplements, and as a component ingredient in nutritional supplements and vitamins. They also go into many food and beverage products, including functional drinks, teas, coffee and coffee substitutes, bars, and powdered blends.

Proudly Made in China

In 1996, CEO and Founder of Nammex, Jeff Chilton organized organic mushroom production in China. That initiative paid off and today all Nammex mushrooms are grown or wildcrafted deep in the mountains of China by our Certified Organic production partners.

Learn more about our growers in China.

Not All Medicinal Mushrooms Products are Created Equal

US lab-grown Tiger’s Milk is not real Tiger’s Milk but Inonotus mycelium grown on grain. Analysis has shown that Inonotus mycelium on grain has low levels of beta-glucan, very high levels of starch and lacks secondary metabolites. Nammex only uses 100% organic Tiger’s Milk which are rigorously tested and guaranteed for active compounds. Learn more about the mycelia myth and the 10 Questions to Ask about Your Mushroom Supplement.

Tiger’s Milk Mushroom Research

Tiger Milk Medicinal Mushroom Lignosus rhinocerus (Agaricomycetes) Polysaccharides Mediates Airway Smooth Muscle Relaxation via Muscarinic and Histamine Receptors. Abubakar Bishir Daku, Bushra Solehah Mohd Rosdan, Nurul Iffah Kamaruddin, Wan Amir Nizam Wan Ahmad , Asma Abdullah Nurul
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/40460402

The Tiger Milk Medicinal Mushroom Tm02®, Lignosus Rhinocerus (Agaricomycetes), Water-Soluble Sclerotial Extract (Xlr®) Induces Vasorelaxation In Rat Isolated Aortae
doi.org/10.1615/intjmedmushrooms.2025059844

Medicinal Tiger Milk Mushroom Lignosus rhinocerus TM02® (Agaricomycetes) Sclerotia Supplementation Mitigates Hypertension and Alleviates Vascular Dysfunction Partly through Oxidative Stress Modulation in Spontaneously Hypertensive Rats. Yi En Wong, Muhammad Fazril Mohamad Razif , Szu-Ting Ng, Chon-Seng Tan, Shin-Yee Fung, Dharmani Devi Murugan
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/39241161