Cordyceps sinesis is sometimes known as the Chinese fungus called Cordyceps; or Caterpillar Fungus. It can also be considered to be the Yarchagumba Herb which grows in Nepal, in the subalpine pasture areas of that country. It is called Yarchagumba after the parasitic fungus that is valued for its tonic and aphrodisiacal properties in medicine. Some medical practitioners consider the Cordyceps sinesis very good for lessening phlegm, halting hemorrhage (otherwise called profuse bleeding), boosting your vitality and energy levels; and enhancing the resistance of your kidneys and lungs to disorders.

Other medical uses of Cordyceps sinesis is to relieve tinnitus, dizziness, sore knees and loins, emission, impotence, asthma and general shortness of breath.

In some places in Bhutan and the Tibetan Highlands, it is possible to find a wild variety of the Cordyceps sinesis as well.

Why is there renewed attention about the medicinal potential of Cordyceps sinesis? Female Chinese athletes brought on the media spotlight on Cordyceps sinesis because these athletes broke so many world records in athletics while they were consuming this substance. According to the New York Journal of Medicine, Cordyceps sinesis is believed to be just as potent as Ginseng in treating people who were extremely exhausted or suffered from a protracted illness.

Since the Cordyceps sinesis is a fungus, it can be gathered from the bodies of dead caterpillars that belong to the Hepilus fabricius moth species. It is believed the fungus starts growing on live caterpillars but then grows so fast and so expansively in the body of the caterpillar that the caterpillar eventually dies.

Folk medicine practitioners process the Cordyceps sinesis by making it into a powder, and/or combining it with other tonics. But the most widely accepted use of Cordyceps sinesis is to take the infected moth pupae, stuff it into a raw duck, then boil all of the duck with the Cordyceps sinesis in it to make a broth. It is the broth which patients are instructed to drink to counter their ailments.

Some medical practitioners call the Cordyceps sinesis to be a natural form of the anti-impotence remedy Viagra. It could also be called an Herbal Viagra. At present, villages or rural communities earn a living by venturing into the mountains so they can collect or harvest this fungus from such locations. The reason the trade in Cordyceps sinesis is so lucrative is that, with pay for gathering Cordyceps sinesis in a day estimated at around $35 per villager, villagers stand to earn much more this way than from the usual livelihood options. Dolpa, Nepal is the main area where Cordyceps sinesis supplies are gathered from – it is believed that nearly 50% of the fungus supplies are derived from the Dolpa area alone.

One reason Cordyceps sinesis came to the attention of folk medicine practitioners is that Tibetan Yaks (the animals bred by Tibetan herdsmen) ate the fungus, and showed heightened energy and tendencies to have sex than the other Yaks. So if a Yak can benefit, the folk medicine practitioners must have reasoned, maybe people could too. And that is why demand for Cordyceps sinesis must be growing – because people want the benefits attributed to the consumption of the fungus.