If you’re a skincare addict or a vegan chef, you’ve likely already heard a little bit about tremella mushrooms, otherwise known as snow mushrooms or white fungi. These mushrooms have huge benefits for your skin, your body, and the planet because of their unique organic properties that fight aging and inflammation while boosting immunity and collagen.

Here’s what tremella mushrooms can do for your skin, your body, and the planet as a whole.

TREMELLA MUSHROOMS HELP DETOX, RENEW, AND DEFEND THE PLANET
Tremella mushrooms are also called “jelly mushrooms” because of their translucent and “bouncy” appearance. They’re most commonly found on the branches and trunks of trees, and are usually bright white or a buttery cream color. (They can also appear a ghostly blue in the dark.)

Because of their ability to adapt in many climates, tremella mushrooms are a key part of ecosystems on every continent except Antarctica. As fungi, these organisms help break down organic debris like feathers and fallen leaves, cycling nutrients through the soil and propelling minerals back to growing plants.

Tremella mushrooms also save trees and forest canopies, because they’re a mycoparasite—an organism that eats actual parasites, including those that feast on tree roots and bark. They’re truly MVPs of the natural world.

IN THE BODY, TREMELLA MUSHROOMS HELP RENEW + PROTECT
Nutritionally, tremella mushrooms are a goldmine of vitamins and minerals. Packed with fiber and Vitamin D, they’ve been used for centuries in Asian herbal medicine to help promote circulation and wellness. Tremella mushrooms are proven anti-inflammatories which help keep the blood flowing, and also are proven to help with heart health and immunity. Combined with their ability to boost collagen production and protect collagen-producing cells, they’re also an ingestible way to keep your skin glowing.

RECIPE TO TRY: TREMELLA MUSHROOM x MISO RAMEN

ON THE BODY, TREMELLA MUSHROOMS HELP SKIN STAY SMOOTH, STRONG + SUPPLE
Tremella mushrooms bring youth and “bounce”—aka elasticity—back to skin because they help fortify your natural skin barrier and hold a ton of extra hydration, which can help maintain the skin’s optimal moisture balance. Extract from tremella mushrooms has also been shown to “reduce cell death” in collagen-producing skin cells. That means tremella mushrooms help skin heal from sun damage or pollution, and also help protect the youth-boosting collagen that keeps skin supple and free of fine lines.

GET YOUR DOSE OF TREMELLA MUSHROOMS IN THE BODY:

FOR CHOCOLATE FIENDS:
Malama Superfood Vegan Chocolate Bar (5 Pack), $24.99

FOR COFFEE SWAPS:
Teecino Tremella Tulsi Adaptogen Coffee Alternative, $12.95

FOR COMFY SOUP:
Xi Shi Jin Tremella Mushroom and Lotus Seed Soup Mix, $5.95

FOR POWDERED FORM:
Real Mushroom’s Tremella Mushroom Extract Powder, $29.95

GET YOUR DOSE OF TREMELLA MUSHROOMS ON THE BODY:

FOR DRY SKIN:
Humanrace Humidifying Cream, $50

FOR SUN DAMAGE OR SENSITIVITY:
Nature Of Things Repairative CBD Cream, $75

FOR CLEANSING:
Alpyn Beauty Juneberry & Collagen Scrub, $49

FOR RADIANCE:
Tata Harper Hydrating Floral Mask, $95