Mushrooms known for healing benefits
DEAR DOCTOR: I thought mushrooms were kind of a nonstarter from a nutritional standpoint, but now I read they are the best source of the antioxidants linked to anti-aging. Have I underestimated their health benefits? They’re kind of icky, but I’ll eat them if I have to.
DEAR READER: It’s true that mushrooms contain many antioxidants, including glutathione and ergothioneine. That seems to be where these claims start. Glutathione helps protect and repair cells damaged by everyday life, pollution and harmful influences. Although deficiency can lead to multiple health problems, it isn’t known whether supplementation can help people without a deficiency. Ergothioneine is found throughout the human body and in black beans, kidney beans and mushrooms. Although ergothioneine has shown antioxidant properties in the laboratory, little is known of its physiological role in humans.
Mushrooms do have immune-stimulating and anti-inflammatory properties. For example, mushrooms contain arginine, which has been shown to inhibit the growth of tumor cells and decrease the rate of cancer metastasis. Some edible mushrooms also contain fatty acids and lectins that decrease inflammation and may
inhibit growth of tumors such as breast cancer. Further, phytochemicals in mushrooms such as indoles, phenols and terpenoids have been shown to decrease inflammation. All these compounds are potentially important because chronic inflammation can lead to cancer and vascular disease, even as inflammation and oxidation can lead to harmful effects on nerve cells in the brain.
The effects on the brain bring us to one of the biggest worries in aging: the risk of dementia. Countries such as Italy and France, which have high dietary amounts of ergothioniene, have substantially lower rates of Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease compared to countries such as the United States with low amounts of dietary ergothionene. But all of this information about mushrooms and their link to health and aging is far from conclusive.
Robert Ashley, M.D., is an internist and assistant professor of medicine at the University of California, Los Angeles.
Send your questions to askthedoctors@mednet.ucla.edu, or write: Ask the Doctors, c/o Media Relations, UCLA Health, 924 Westwood Blvd., Suite 350, Los Angeles, CA 90095.