Life Cykel is a mushroom supplement brand that sells oral tinctures. The company claims to offer products for "biohackers," to support energy, brain health, stress and more.
But are mushroom extracts shown to improve brain health in clinical studies? Does Life Cykel use any unhealthy ingredients? What was our Product Tester's honest experience trying this brand for a month? And is Life Cykel better or worse than popular mushroom supplements like Auri?
In this article we'll answer all of these questions and more, as we analyze the ingredients in two of Life Cykel's best sellers (Cordyceps+ and Lion's Mane+) to give our take on whether or not they're likely to be effective, and whether or not they're healthy.
We'll also discuss the risk of side effects, share our Product Tester's experience trying the brand for a month, and compare Life Cykel to other popular mushroom supplement brands to pick our winners (and losers).
Key takeaways:
- Effectively formulated for nootropic effects
- Contains one inactive ingredient we consider potentially unhealthy
- We do not currently recommend Life Cykel
Ingredient Analysis — Cordyceps+
The ingredients in Life Cykel Cordyceps+ are shown below:
We consider it to be a sign of a high-quality mushroom supplement when both the mycelia and fruiting body are included, because these compounds have differing levels of health-promoting nutrients and phytonutrients, according to a medical review published in the Antioxidants journal.
Mycelium is essentially the "roots" of the mushroom, and the fruiting body is the "head" of the plant that appears above the soil.
Cordyceps is clinically shown to improve learning and memory in animal studies, as we documented in our Genius Mushrooms review article.
The mushroom was also described as having "remarkable clinical health effects" including anti-cancer and anti-inflammatory activity, in a 2014 medical review.
Kakadu plum is also a potent antioxidant according to a 2019 clinical trial, although we can't find any studies proving its benefits in humans.
Natural flavor is an inactive ingredient we recommend avoiding, because it's a broad categorical descriptor that may include solvents and preservatives according to a medical review published in the Food and Chemical Toxicology journal.
Overall, we consider Cordyceps+ likely to promote health and potentially likely to have a nootropic effect, however we don't currently recommend this supplement due to the inclusion of natural flavor.
We Tested Life Cykel
One of our Product Testers named Joshua Martinez tried Life Cykel for 30 days.
Here's his experience:
Opening and using the Lyfe Cykel Mushroom extract was extremely easy.
The extract calls for 2 milliliter (mL) serving sizes and the product comes with a pipette bulb attached to the lid and markings on the dropper to show how much volume is being served.
I added the extract to different kinds of drinks and only needed to swirl the cup for the extract to fully blend in.
The taste really depends on what the extract was being mixed with.
Surprisingly, with water there was little to no harsh flavor of the extract. Mixing with orange juice on the other hand, tasted as if I brushed my teeth before hand with every sip.
I do think this product followed through with the effects it advertised.
I got the Lion’s Mane extract which advertised increased focus and energy during the day while also helping improve sleep quality at night.
During the day I felt more focused and determined to finish work that I had been pushing off for days. At night I felt like I slept more soundly, and tend to track my sleep with my Garmin watch.
The few nights I drank some extract I slept a lot longer than usual!
I did have a weird tingly sensation on my teeth after drinking the extract and the Celsius. I don’t recommend drinking it with extra stimulants.
I didn't notice any side effects while using the extract daily.
I would definitely buy this product regularly, and would even dry the other mushroom extracts to see what my body prefers more.
Overall, I would rate Life Cykel a 9/10.
Ingredient Analysis — Lion's Mane+
The ingredients in Life Cykel Lion's Mane+ are shown below:
Lion's mane is clinically shown to support optimal cognitive function, as we discussed in our Four Sigmatic reviews article.
Beyond its nootropic effects, lion's mane may also support mental health.
A medical review published in the International Journal of Molecular Sciences described lion's mane as possessing "therapeutic potential" for depression, because it's been shown in clinical trials to significantly reduce depression scores.
Our comments about this formulation in regard to natural flavor and Kakadu plum are the same as those in the previous Ingredient Analysis section.
Overall, we consider Life Cykel Lion's Mane+ likely to have a nootropic effect and somewhat likely to have a nootropic effect, but we don't currently recommend this supplement due to the inclusion of natural flavor.
Does Life Cykel Cause Side Effects?
Life Cykel's supplements don't appear to have been studied in any clinical trials, which makes it more challenging to determine whether or not they're likely to cause side effects.
However, we can make an educated guess based on the ingredients used.
Functional mushrooms like those used in Life Cykel have favorable safety profiles, and we do not consider effectively-dosed mushroom extracts likely to cause side effects, as we discussed in our Alpha Brain reviews article.
While we consider natural flavors to be unhealthy, we haven't seen any clinical evidence that this ingredient causes acute side effects.
Overall, we consider Life Cykel supplements unlikely to cause side effects in otherwise healthy adults.
We can't find any information about potential side effects on the Life Cykel website at the time of publishing this article.
Life Cykel vs. Popular Mushroom Supps
Here's how Life Cykel compares to other popular mushroom supplements in terms of formulation quality, in our opinion:
Genius Mushrooms
Contains functional mushrooms like reishi, which is clinically shown to protect the brain from cognitive decline.
However, this brand includes these mushrooms at doses we consider below the effective reference range, so we give Life Cykel the advantage from a potential efficacy standpoint.
Winner: Life Cykel
Everyday Dose
Everyday Dose is a nootropic coffee brand that contains functional mushrooms.
As we documented in the above-linked review, this brand contains various research-backed ingredients, and is free of any unhealthy additives.
We give Everyday Dose the advantage from a health standpoint.
Winner: Everyday Dose
Auri Mushroom Gummies
Like many gummy supplements, this brand contains inactive flavoring ingredients that we consider unhealthy.
Life Cykel is the healthier choice.
Winner: Life Cykel
Our Clean Nootropic Picks
Illuminate Labs Ginkgo Biloba Extract is our top herbal nootropic pick.
A medical review published in the Psychopharmacology journal found that ginkgo biloba supplementation improved attention and cognitive performance in healthy, young adults.
Mind Lab Pro by Performance Lab is our top multi-ingredient nootropic pick.
This is the first Illuminate Labs Certified supplement, and has been shown to be effective for short-term cognitive improvements in two clinical trials published in peer-reviewed journals.
Life Cykel Pros and Cons
Pros:
- Uses mycelia and fruiting body
- Likely effective doses
- Formulations we reviewed should support overall health
- Unlikely to cause side effects
- Brand publishes test results
- Informed Sport Certified
- Our Product Tester enjoyed the product experience
- Our Product Tester experienced positive health effects
- Glass packaging
- Healthier than some competitors
Cons:
- Both supplements reviewed contain natural flavor
- Doesn't appear clinically tested
