Eating 5 mushrooms a day may help combat heart disease, cancer

Low in calories and packed with essential vitamins and minerals, mushrooms make for an excellent addition to your diet. According to a new research, eating just five small mushrooms a day could help combat a range of diseases, including heart disease, cancer and dementia.

This is due to two key antioxidants — ergothioneine and glutathione. These substances play a significant role in neutralising damaging ‘free radicals’, which are implicated in a variety of severe diseases, according to researchers.

“What we found is that, without a doubt, mushrooms are highest dietary source of these two antioxidants taken together, and that some types are really packed with both of them,” said Robert Beelman, director, Penn State Centre for Plant and Mushroom Products for Health in the US.

Portobello. Enoki. Porcini. Chanterelle. Stinkhorn. Puffball. Dung Cannon. Hair ice. Or the almost unpronounceable Hydnellum peckii. One may try but none can ever remember - or pronounce - names of the nearly 14,000 kinds of mushroom found worldwide.

You can’t eat them all either as a few are poisonous with macabre names (Deadly Dapperling, Destroying Angels, Death Cap, Autumn Skullcap). A few psychedelic mushrooms are so trippy that countries have tagged them illegal.

However, there are several edible ones that are packed with nutrients. According to the Coimbatore-based Mushroom Foundation of India, mushrooms are rich in protein, carbohydrates and vitamins, are low in caloric value and hence, recommended for heart and diabetic patients.

They are rich in proteins as compared to cereals, fruits and vegetables; the proteins are retained even after cooking. Mushrooms possess low caloric value, high protein, high fibre content and high sodium-to-potassium ratio, making them ideal for diabetic and hypertension patients, say researchers.

There are eight popular mushrooms in India, like button mushrooms which are small, edible mushrooms with a closed cap and light brown or pale white flesh. It is the most popular mushroom variety grown and consumed around the world.

Mushrooms are good sources of essential nutrients such as vitamins (B and D), minerals (selenium, copper and potassium), and antioxidants.

Oyster mushrooms are known for their tender flesh and velvety texture. A cup of raw, sliced oyster mushrooms is only 28 calories, and is low in fat, cholesterol, sodium and high on nutrients like niacin, folic acid, vitamins C and B12, and the amino acid ergothioneine.

Other varieties found in India are Shiitake, Cordyceps, Lion’s Mane, Reishi, Turkey Tail and Chaga mushrooms.