Magic mushies super boost of sunshine

MUSHROOMS have emerged as the latest superfood with new research showing you can obtain double your daily requirement of vitamin D from just three of the fungi.

As vitamin D levels crash in midwinter, putting bone, muscle and immune health at risk, scientists have found a way to boost the vitamin D content of mushrooms. Exposing them to ultraviolet light turns them into a magic source of the sunlight vitamin.

Eating just three mushrooms that have been exposed to sunlight for an hour can provide an adult with double their vitamin D needs for a day. The superfood quality of mushrooms has emerged in a new analysis published on the Government’s Food Standards Australia New Zealand website.

It shows 100g of regular mushrooms contain 2.2 micrograms of vitamin D2, just over 20 per cent of daily needs. A youth requires five micrograms a day and an older adult needs 15 micrograms.