The health supporting mushroom Fomes officinalis Agarikon） can live for 50 years or more, making it one of the longest living perennial mushrooms in the world. This is even more impressive in light of the fact that it starts growing on trees that are already old to begin with. In other words, Fomes officinalis can only survive in old growth forests.* The earliest written record of any mushroom used for health support can be found in the Materia Medica from 65 B.C., where Fomes officinalis extract was listed by Greek physician Dioscorides as a tuberculosis remedy. 25 Other oral and written traditions from Poland and elsewhere in Europe indicate that Fomes officinalis was the most important health supporting mushroom in ancient Europe. Native Americans were also aware of the health supporting properties of Fomes officinalis extract. Oral traditions among certain tribes hold that it was used as a remedy against diseases brought by the Europeans, including smallpox. One such tribe was the Haida of the American Northwest, who even incorporated Agarikon into their spirituality where it was associated with the female creator spirit Raven, and by extension to female sexuality and fertility. The active agent from Fomes Officinalis mushroom has astringent, pore tightening and moisturizing effects on the skin, producing an improvement of the skin's tone and firmness and minimizing the visible appearance of skin suffering from excess sebum secretion.Pore Reductyl is an extract of the pulp of a mushroom (Fomes officinalis). It is a pore refiner for oily and mixed skins. It is a natural astringent containing agaric acid, that overcomes all excessive secretion, smoothing, tightening and moisturizing the skin. Pore Reductyl is ideal for use in pore refiners, astringents, and moisturizers.