benefits of mushroom

Identifying mushrooms requires a basic understanding of theirmacroscopicstructure. Most areBasidiomycetesand gilled. Their spores, calledbasidiospores, are produced on the gills and fall in a fine rain of powder from under the caps as a result. At the microscopic level the basidiospores are shot offbasidiaand then fall between the gills in the dead air space. As a result, for most mushrooms, if the cap is cut off and placed gillsidedown overnight, a powdery impression reflecting the shape of the gills (or pores, or spines, etc.) is formed (when the fruit body is sporulating). The color of the powdery print, called aspore print, is used to help classify mushrooms and can help to identify them. Spore print colors include white (most common), brown, black, purplebrown, pink, yellow, and creamy, but almost never blue, green, or red.

Typical mushrooms are the fruit bodies of members of the orderAgaricales, whosetype genusisAgaricusand type species is the field mushroom,Agaricus campestris. However, in modernmolecularlydefinedclassifications, not all members of the order Agaricales produce mushroom fruit bodies, and many other gilled fungi, collectively called mushrooms, occur in other orders of the classAgaricomycetes. For example,chanterellesare in theCantharellales, false chanterelles such asGomphusare in theGomphales, milk mushrooms (Lactarius) and russulas (Russula), as well asLentinellus, are in theRussulales, while the tough, leathery generaLentinusandPanusare among thePolyporales, butNeolentinusis in theGloeophyllales, and the little pinmushroom genus,Rickenella, along with similar genera, are in theHymenochaetales.

One study found that substituting red meat with white buttonmushroomscan help enhance weight loss. Obese participants with a mean age of just over 48 years ate approximately one cup of mushrooms per day in place of meat. The control group ate a standard diet without mushrooms. At the end of the 12month trial, the intervention group had lost an average of 3.6 percent of their starting weight, or about seven pounds. They also showed improvements in body composition, such as reduced waist circumference, and ability to maintain their weight loss, compared to the control group.

One dietary analysisfound that mushroom consumption was associated with better diet quality and improved nutrition. Mushrooms contain some of the most powerful natural medicines on the planet. About 100 species are being studied for their healthpromoting benefits, and about a half dozen really stand out for their ability to deliver a tremendous boost to your immune system.

Consuming dried white button mushroom extract was found to be as effective as taking supplemental vitamin D2 or D3 for increasingvitamin Dlevels (25hydroxyvitamin D). Nine recently presented studies on mushrooms detail a wide variety of health benefits, including: improved weight management, improved nutrition, increased vitamin D levels, and improved immune system function.

Long chain polysaccharides, particularly alpha and beta glucan molecules, are primarily responsible for the mushrooms' beneficial effect on your immune system. In one study, adding one or two servings of dried shiitake mushrooms was found to have a beneficial, modulating effect on immune system function.Another study done on mice found that white button mushrooms enhanced the adaptive immunity response to salmonella.

Cordyceps, also called caterpillar fungus or Tochukasu, is a favorite of athletes because it increases ATP production, strength and endurance, and has antiaging effects.This parasitic mushroom is unique because, in the wild, it grows out of an insect host instead of a plant host. It has long been used within both traditional Chinese and Tibetan medicine. It has hypoglycemic and possible antidepressant effects, protects your liver and kidneys, increases blood flow, helps normalize your cholesterol levels, and has been used to treat Hepatitis B. Cordyceps has antitumor properties as well. Scientists at The University of Nottingham have been studying cordycepin, one of the active medicinal compounds found in these fungi,and the one identified as a potential cancer drug.

The button mushroom is an excellent lowcalorie food, especially for diabetics. It contains a number of valuable nutrients, including protein, enzymes, B vitamins (especially niacin), and vitamin D2. However, there are many other types of mushrooms worthy of consideration if you want to improve your diet. I'll review a few of my favorites below. Farrar's focus has been on growing various gourmet mushroom species, particularly the wood decaying mushroom species, which differ greatly from your average button mushroom in terms of biology, nutrition and medicinal value.

Shiitake is a popular culinary mushroom used in dishes around the world. It contains a number of healthstimulating agents, including lentinan, the polysaccharide for which it was named. Lentinan has been isolated and used to treat stomach and other cancers due to its antitumor properties, but has also been found to protect your liver, relieve other stomach ailments (hyperacidity, gallstones, ulcers), anemia, ascites, and pleural effusion.

Reishi is known as Lingzhi in China, or spirit plant. It's also been called Mushroom of Immortality a nickname that kind of says it all. Reishi has been used medicinally in Asia for thousands of years. One of its more useful compounds is ganoderic acid (a triterpenoid), which is being used to treat lung cancer,leukemia and other cancers.