Mushroom's Nutritional Benefits: The Buzzwords

If you go to a health food store to get your daily multivitamins or other supplements, you have probably noticed an enormous increase in mushroom extract products on the shelves lately. There has been a lot of research into Japanese diet and the role that mushrooms play in keeping this nation so relatively free of disease, and researchers are finding out some weird and fabulous things! Of course, it isn't mandatory to spend hundreds of dollars a year on mushroom extracts. Simply grab a mushroom growing kit and get them fresh and full of goodies, or usedried porcini mushrooms or dried shiitake mushrooms in your ordinary cooking. Here we look at the exotic substances that make these mushrooms so special.

Chitosans

In some research these are referred to as chitins -- however, you'll soon find that this is a component of bugs' exoskeletons if you try to research it further! The chemical compound that medical researchers are interested in is the chitosan group. Chitosans have many properties that dietary fiber also exhibits, including:

• Adding bulk to your food and making you feel fuller, faster
• Traps carbohydrates in the digestion process and slowing glucose absorption, effectively lowering the GI of foods
• Speeds passage of foods through the gut
• Lowers both total cholesterol and low density lipoprotein
• Balances the pH levels intra-intestines

Chitosans are found in high concentrations in mushrooms that you can make yourself with mushroom growing kits, like portabellas and enokis.

Beta glucans

These are somewhat of a buzzword in medical research at the moment. They occur in the bran part of cereal grains, the cell wall of baker's yeast, and also in mushrooms. Arguably, the best form to intake is mushrooms, because the beta glucans come in the healthiest package. Beta glucans in mushroom research were found to be highest in portabella mushrooms, although shitakes and maitakes also have moderate amounts, and the cardio protective benefits can be gained from only moderate beta glucan intake.

Oligosaccharide levels

These are a very specific type of sugar molecule that occurs in dreid porcini mushrooms, dried shiitake mushrooms and most of the varieties you can grow at home in a mushroom growing kits. They are only partially digestible, but it is actually the undigested components that exhibit the most medical promise. These components act as probiotics, helping eliminate harmful bacteria in the colon. They do this by acting as food for the good bacteria, which them outcompete the baddies. Hooray for mushrooms!