Genius Mushrooms and Host Defense are two of the most popular mushroom supplements on the market, but unfortunately for these two popular doesn't often mean best. It generally just means that they've got the largest marketing budget.
Both of them claim the specific benefits of multiple mushrooms like Lion’s Mane, Reishi, and Cordyceps. It's worth noting that the single ingredient capsules on offer by Genius and Host Defense can sometimes fair a little better, they're generally still not great than the MyCommunity and Genius Musrhooms mixed products.
However, a quick look at the ingredients breakdowns and you realize pretty quickly you're just getting beta glucans at best, which whilst they do have some immune boosting effects, the benefits to brain health are minimal compared to what people are hoping for with Lion's Mane, or and the energy boost you expect from Cordyceps is none existent. Now, it's true that both Genius Mushrooms and Host Defense aren't the priciest mushroom supplements on the market, but there are still better options at this price point.
We've got a breakdown of the best mushrooms supplements here.
However, if you really want to know the differences between the two let's get onto the breakdown.
Genius Mushrooms: Where It Misses the Mark
Genius Mushrooms combines three well-known mushrooms: Lion’s Mane for cognitive support, Cordyceps for energy, and Reishi for immune health.
The most potent benefits of mushrooms like Lion’s Mane come from compounds like erinacines (linked to brain health) and cordycepin in Cordyceps (known for energy and endurance). However, since Genius Mushrooms doesn’t standardize its extracts, it's almost impossible that you're getting meaningful levels of these compounds as you'd need about 10 times more of a normal extract to get nearly enough.
Host Defense: Lots of Variety, But Still Lacking in Quality
Host Defense is another brand that comes up a lot, particularly with its MyCommunity blend, which includes a variety of mushrooms like Turkey Tail, Chaga, Lion’s Mane, and Cordyceps. While the blend offers a wide range of mushrooms and is even grown organically, but it suffers from the same lack of standardization.
Host Defense and Genius Mushrooms Fruiting Bodies vs Mycelium
There are a lot of myths around mycelium and fruiting bodies, in general there are more active compounds in the fruiting bodies, with the exception of erinacines and lion's mane (which are more prevalent in the mycelium), but still in very low amounts without standardization. So, if you're looking at a budget mushroom supplement you do actually want to look for fruiting bodies as it's more likely to have enough beta glucans. So, in this case there is some truth to the suggestion that fruiting body would be better.
Pricing and Customer Reviews
Genius Mushrooms is priced at $21.99 for a 30-serving bottle meaning it's $0.73 per serving of course you'd need to double or triple up to get enough, so keep that in mind. Customer feedback is mixed; some users report enhanced mental clarity and energy, while others note minimal effects, likely due to the non-standardized extracts and use of mycelium.
Host Defense products vary in price. For instance, the Lion’s Mane Capsules are available in bottles of 30, 60, or 120 capsules, ranging from $20 to $60. But if we're comparing it to the main MyCommunity product, we're looking at $30 for something comparable to Genius Mushrooms, meaning Genius is the slightly better option of the bad pair.
Customer reviews are generally positive regarding immune support; however, some users express concerns about the lack of potency, which can be attributed to the use of mycelium and absence of standardized extracts.
Bottom Line
While Genius Mushrooms and Host Defense may be popular, they don’t hold up when it comes to actual potency and reliability. Both are pretty poor, so if you really want one of them, then you're best off just buying the cheapest.
Without standardized extracts, neither product can guarantee that you’re getting the full benefits of medicinal mushrooms. As such there's much better options available and we've put together a handy list here. We generally recommend Nootrum if you're looking for a mixed blend as they do standardize for the compounds that matter, and you can read our full review here.