Benefits From Mushroom’s Nutritional Value and How They Could Save the World
The mushroom has a long and ancient history.
Mythically, according to translated hieroglyphic writings, Pharaohs of ancient Egypt believed that eating mushrooms could bring about immortality.
Psychedelically, we have all heard about Shamans using mushrooms in tribal traditions to create trance states of people eating certain mushrooms to experience altered realities, ostensibly in pursuit of “enlightenment”.
Medicinally, mushrooms have proven to benefit the immune system enormously and finally, as a dietary addition, many of our cultures have developed a robust taste for mushrooms.
Mushrooms Healing History
Beyond the magic of the mind, the historical reality is that the mushroom has had much more of a popular attraction as a healing substance, particularly in China and Japan, than as a mind-altering one.
In fact, Shen Noug’s Herbal, the first and prototypical book on medicinal herbs in China, written between 100 and 200 AD, speaks about several mushrooms and their unique medicinal properties. During the Ming dynasty, over 1,500 years later, a compendium of the Materia Medica listed over 20 species of healing mushrooms.
Mushroom Nutrition Availability
According to a recent study, mushrooms contain several key nutrients, including copper, potassium, folate and niacin.
In this study, seven varieties of mushrooms (White Button, Oyster, Shiitake, Enoki, Portabella, Crimini and Maitake) were analyzed to create a unique nutrient profile for each.
Agricultural Research Service’s (ARS) lead nutritionist David Haytowitz, located at the Beltsville (Md.) Human Nutrition Research Center (BHNRC), coordinated the project. Haytowitz is with the BHNRC’s Nutrient Data Laboratory (NDL).
The research was funded in part by the Mushroom Council of Dublin, Calif. In order to get a nationally representative sample, mushrooms were collected from retail outlets around the country. The mushroom varieties were analyzed for fat, fiber, protein, carbohydrate, vitamins, and minerals.
While most varieties were analyzed raw, White Button mushrooms, which are commonly used in recipes, were also analyzed after stir-frying and microwaving in order to gauge the levels of nutrients retained after cooking.
Adding to existing data, Portabella mushrooms were analyzed after grilling and Shiitake mushrooms were analyzed after stir-frying.
Most nutrients were found to be fully retained when cooked, while others were retained at between 80 and 95 percent of their levels in raw mushrooms.
While not often thought of as a significant source of nutrients, mushrooms are both a phytonutrient and vitamin rich food.
Minerals in Mushrooms
All of the mushrooms tested were found to provide a significant amount of copper. Each cup of stir-fried White Button mushrooms provides 0.3 milligram of copper, which is about one-third of the recommended daily intake for adults. Copper helps the body produce red blood cells and drives a variety of bio chemical reactions that are essential to human health.
Mushrooms also provide a significant amount of potassium, a mineral that helps the body maintain normal heart rhythm, fluid balance and muscle and nerve function. Two-thirds of a cup of sliced, grilled Portabella mushrooms contains the same amount of potassium as a medium-sized banana.
For juicing enthusiasts, a few mushrooms tossed into the mix can only enhance what is already nature’s best source of liquid vitamins.
Six Species of Edible Mushrooms
In the world of edible mushrooms, there are six species commonly found at the dinner table
- Popular White Button
- Exotic-looking Oyster Mushroom
- Crimini Mushrooms
- Large Portabella Mushrooms
- Shitake Mushrooms
- Enoki Mushrooms
Medicinal Properties of White Button Mushrooms
The White Button mushroom (Agaricus bisporus) is the domesticated mushroom that has been deliberately bred to have a uniform button top and a slender stem.
Consumer’s demand is largely for the cap so the breeding design has had a strictly commercial purpose.
1 It is the most widely cultivated mushroom in the United States. According to mushroomexpert.com, “It is cultivated by mushroom farmers to the tune of $800 million each year, during which the average American consumes 2.2 pounds of mushrooms per year.” 2
Although the Agaricus bisporus mushroom is also the world’s most widely cultivated mushroom, it does not have the solid nutritional and medicinal reputation as some of the more exotic varieties.
According to the Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture, the Button mushroom possesses as powerful antioxidant properties as the renowned Maitake and the Matsutake mushrooms, which are widely known for their ability to help build the immune system.3 The larger Crimini and even larger Portabella mushrooms actually represent different growth stages of the Agaricus bisporus.
Oyster Mushroom as Chinese Medicine
The Oyster Mushroom (Pleurotus ostreatus) is also quite popular. These mushrooms are uniquely distinctive and do look like oysters.
They have white gills decorating their short little stems and are found in clumps and invariably growing on wood in the wild.4
The Oyster Mushroom can be made into a soup, cooked with a variety of foods, used in a mushroom kebob, or tossed into a salad.5
Traditional Chinese medicine has used these exotic looking mushrooms for joint health and muscle relaxation. 6
These mushrooms are said to be high in iron and are classified by herbalists as natural blood builders. Even natural vitamin supplements fall short of the nutritious whole food properties of the often forgotten mushroom.
Medicinal Properties of Shitake Mushrooms
The Shitake mushroom (Lentinula edodes) is often found on logs and oaks in forests and is also known as the oak mushroom. In agricultural milieus, it is grown on synthetic logs, sawdust or other usable forms of agricultural waste.
The Shitake mushroom accounts for 10% of the world’s crop of mushrooms. In traditional oriental medicine, there is a wide variety of uses for the mushroom, including its beneficial effect on the functioning of the liver, its regeneration powers, its ability to boost chi (vital biological energy), and its retardation of premature aging.
The mushroom, with modern medicine’s help, has taken on a kind of medicinal renaissance after the successful antitumor research developed in the late 60’s at Purdue University by Tetsuro Ikekawa and his colleagues at the National Cancer Center Research Institute in Tokyo.
Current science is focusing not only on its cancer fighting properties but on substances isolated from the Shitake mushroom that appear to address heart disease and AIDS. The anti-tumor factor continues to be researched. 8
Immune Boosting Enoki Mushrooms
All of the edible mushrooms that grow wild (on wood) appear to have special medicinal properties. The Enoki mushroom harbors the polysaccharide, flammulin, which Japanese and Chinese medical researchers claim to have shown anti-tumor/anti-cancer properties.
It should be noted that Nagano, Japan- the heart of Enoki agriculture, has a very low rate of cancer. The Enoki is said to be anti-viral, anti-bacteriological thereby providing a powerful immunological boost and it has been shown to have particularly positive effects in the treatment of prostate cancer and lymphoma.10
History of Mushroom’s Healing Powers
Even the most edible and the most cultivated mushrooms provide a cornucopia of medicinal possibilities and have clearly captured the attention of Western science.11
The reality is that this fascination for the medicinal value of mushrooms is not new. For 3,000 years, the Chinese have looked to the mushroom for its healing powers.
The Japanese have also looked into the healing properties of mushrooms for centuries, so it is fitting that many modern day discoveries regarding the medicinal application of mushrooms have been pioneered by the Japanese.
Indeed, it does appear that the mushroom has the ability to help one maintain a healthy body balance.
Reishi Mushroom Benefits
One of the most famous of these mushrooms is the Reishi (Ganoderma lucidum). The Reishi mushroom is referred to by the Japanese as the “Ten Thousand Year Old Mushroom.”
Its Chinese name, ling-zhi, means the “Mushroom of Immortality.”
The Reishi has been evaluated in a variety of studies and it has shown to have a positive affect on retinal pigmentary degeneration, neurasthenia, insomnia, duodenal ulcers, hepatitis and muscular dystrophy
In addition, the Reishi mushroom has pro-immune and anti-cancer properties. (Chang & But, 1986; Chang et al, 1984; Huidi & Zhiyuan, 1982).11
The Reishi mushroom has been found to be rich in immune system stimulating polysaccharides, triterpenoids and specialized proteins that have stimulating effects on immune system function.
In a study conducted by Cancer Research UK, it is said about the Reishi that “The major immuno-modulating effects of these active substances include mitogenicity and activation of immune effector cells such as T cells, macrophages and natural killer cells resulting in the production of cytokines, including interleukins, tumor necrosis factor, and interferon.
The therapeutic action of G. lucidum as an anti-cancer and anti-inflammatory agent has been associated with its immuno-modulating properties (Wang et al., 1977).”12 The promising research regarding these specialized members of the plant kingdom has led to a wave of brand new whole food supplements targeting both immunity and over all health.
Finally, according to a 1987 study (Ying et al., 1987), there are at least 270 species of mushrooms with actual medicinal properties. China and Japan, two countries that have a solid history and ancient ties with the medicinal mushroom, have led the world in bringing focus to the magical mushroom, not just as a culinary delight, but for the inroads it has made into some of the greatest health challenges of modern civilization.
References
- 1Mushroom Adventures. Ed. Donald J. Simoni 2008/2009 Season 2 The Mushroom Expert. “Agaricus bisporus: The Button Mushroom” by Michael Kuo, Junuary, 2004
- 3Society of Chemical Industry. “Button Mushrooms Contain As Much Anti-oxidants As Expensive Ones.” ScienceDaily 12 February 2008. 2 September 2008
- 4Missouri Department of Conservation. “Edible Mushrooms” by the Conservation Commission of the State of Missouri reprinted from the Missouri Conservationist, 1983
- 5OOyster Mushrooms. “Oyster Musroom Recipes” by Ralph H. Kurtzman, Jr., 2006
- 6Christopher Hobbs, “Medicinal Mushrooms III” by Christopher Hobbs, 1998
- 7Oakshire Mushroom Farms. Shiitake Recipes. Oakshire, 2007 8World of Fungi Organization. Potential of Fungi Used in Traditional
- Chinese Medicine: Shiitake/shiang-gu (Lentinula edodes)by Mohammad Ismail Haji Mokhtar, 2000
- 9Golden Gourmet Mushrooms. “Enoki Mushrooms” Golden Gourmet Mushrooms, 2000.
- 11Op.Cit., Christopher Hobbs, “Medicinal Mushrooms III.”
- 12 Cancer Research UK ”Medicinally Important Mushrooms” Chapter 3
Six Ways Mushrooms Can Save the World
Watch Paul Stamets share his fascinating journey about mushrooms ability to heal our world.
This video is eighteen minutes long, but really illustrates the brilliant nature of mushrooms and how they offer humanity amazing opportunities to help humans and the planet.
Paul shares the story of how giant mushrooms once grew on earth for ten’s of millions of years.
The mycelium in mushrooms is key and this informational explanation offers a map on how mushrooms are also vital for human health. Enjoy!
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Tags: anti-inflammatory products, chinese medicine, edible mushrooms, enoki mushrooms, georges m halpern md, healing mushrooms, holistic healing, immune system health, immune system support, medical mushrooms, mushrooms nutrition, natural healing, paul stamets, phytonutrients, polysaccharides, portabella mushrooms, potassium rich foods, reishi mushroom benefits, shitake mushrooms, vitamin rich food, whole food supplements
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[...] Benefits from mushroom’s nutritional value and how they could save the world Mushrooms to save the world? That’s what It’s a Healthy New Age is talking about. Learn about a recent study discussing the benefits of mushrooms many key nutrients. [...]
Thanks for the very educative information on mushrooms.
Now I know better!
When I was a little boy, my grandmother always took us to the vast field and showed us mushrooms and told us their names and told us about the health benefits of eating mushroom and which ones were poisonous.
From your article, I can recognize all of them and they were many more. She always cooked them differently – with milk, with groundnut, with honey, with smoked meat etc. And they were terribly delicious.
Even as I write these lines, the aroma and smell of her cooking is coming back to me four decades later!
Ironically the habitat in my Village has been destroyed over the past 15 to 20 years and now I hardly see any mushrooms in the wild.
I hope to start mushroom farming sometime soon.
Long live mushrooms!
Hi Barnabus … I too, remember the good old days when I was around seven and my parents would take me mushroom hunting in the woods. We would go up into the mountains at certain times of the year and walk through trails and into the brush. We had our bags and would fill them with wild mushrooms. Then the treat of going home and cooking up the wild mushrooms and sharing them with other family members. I know on Hawaii mushroom farming is a growing industry again. I just purchased some exotic mushroom poke from Costco which came from Hamakua Mushrooms grown and made in Laupahoehoe on the Big Island of Hawaii. They were delicious. Good luck on your mushroom farming!
Thanks for this piece on medicinal mushrooms. I have a low immune response, and also was diagnosed with cervical dysplasia from HPV two years ago. I used medicinal mushrooms for immune support and it helped me immensely. Now I take Papillex for HPV which contains Reishi mushrooms. Their immune modulating effects are outstanding, I rarely ever get sick anymore.
This piece was very interesting. To G. Kujo, do you know where I can get Papillex? I have been taking Reishi mushroom, but if I can take a formula specifically for my CIN II, I’d much prefer to do that. Thank you for this information.
Hi Ashley, my local vitamin store sells papillex, but you can get it online too, just google it and you’ll find it. It’s actually for CIN and HPV and contains medicinal mushrooms for their immune modulating effects on viral infections
There is something about white button mushrooms. I have an autoimmune illness and for sure they are doing something for me. My blood profile has normalized. I’m already taking a pill form. I think this is important, thanks.