Article By: John Fontana

Mushrooms are one of the most under recognized super foods that I can think of. They are a nutritional powerhouse filled with loads of vitamins and minerals, yet we almost forget about them. Even better, there is a wide variety of mushrooms available, each offering different benefits. With all of the power that mushrooms harness, you typically just see them on pizzas or mixed in with some assorted veggies. The worst is when I see mushrooms as a fried appetizer at restaurants.  Real healthy now, huh?

The Power Of Fungus

While many people view mushrooms as a vegetable, they are actually fungus growing from the earth. Sure, fungus might have a bad connotation, but as far as nutritional value is concerned, these fungi are actually really, really good. Mushrooms have been a medicinal staple in Eastern culture for thousands of years, and Asian cultures view shiitake mushrooms as a symbol of longevity because of their health benefits.

Ask Our Ancestors

It seems to me that any groundbreaking health research done by modern scientists about food can always be traced back thousands of years. Sure these ancient cultures couldn’t define what an antioxidant or phytonutrient was, but they knew which foods were amazing for health and used them as medicine. In this case, mushrooms are one of those foods that have been viewed positively for thousands of years.  And modern science is finally catching up to confirm those ancient findings.

Why So Good?

Breast Cancer-Fighting

Mushrooms have been linked to having powerful anti-cancer properties, some of the strongest of any food. A chemical called Beta-glucans is found in mushrooms, which is commonly used in Japan to treat cancer. Recently, special attention has been given to the effects that mushrooms have on breast cancer. An increased risk of breast cancer occurs when high levels of estrogen are circulating through the body. Mushrooms have shown to prevent levels of estrogen from becoming excessive by reducing production levels of aromatase, a necessary ingredient in estrogen production. Mushrooms have also been shown to help lessen the painful after effects of radiation and chemotherapy. Mushrooms help limit the toxic effect that follow, helping patients overcome nausea and extreme fatigue.

Nutrients

Cremini mushrooms are the little mushrooms that look like white marbles and are most commonly seen in American culture. The list of vitamins and minerals that this mushroom includes is incredible.

Weight Loss Supplement

Many weight-loss supplements attempt to take on the role of caritine, a compound that helps the body use fat for energy instead of storing it. L-ergothionene is the antioxidant that actually causes this process and it can be found in high levels in both shitake and maitake mushrooms. Supplements like Ephedra and Hydroxycut that attempt to mimic this effect have caught a lot of heat in recent years for their side effects. But there’s little doubt you will ever hear about a recall on mushrooms. I don’t know about you, but if I can get all the advantages of manufactured supplements through food, I will always choose the food.

How To Eat?

There is no big mystery to this one, mushrooms can be eaten just about any way you would like. Raw foodists claim that mushrooms will loose some of their health benefits when cooked (which is likely true) but I know that most people enjoy them cooked. If you have trouble eating them raw just try to keep the heat on medium-low while cooking to ensure that you don’t lose too many benefits. Otherwise, try to get a wide variety in the type of mushrooms you select because they all provide different health benefits. If you decide to get your own mushrooms, be careful on which ones you pick. The ones that grow on cow manure will get much more of an experience than just nutritional benefits, but if thats what your looking for than go right ahead.

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