While eating mushrooms is a pretty regular occurrence, there is still so much about fungi that we don’t know. There are many mushrooms that nobody has tried to eat yet – at least, nobody that told the tale afterwards! – and because mushrooms have no singular identifier to warn that they are poisonous, completing the catalogue is a risky prospect.
Of the few mushrooms that we do eat, there are some that offer benefits beyond nutrition. These fungi contain compounds that are being developed into drugs for a host of purposes, from antibiotics and anti-cancer drugs to immunosuppressants and cholesterol inhibitors. Besides being used to develop drugs, it is increasingly popular to consume mushrooms that contain beneficial ingredients, either in a sautee or as herbal pills. Some of them happen to be quite nice to eat too.
The shiitake mushroom, for example, is one of the most popular mushrooms in the world, making up a significant percentage of all mushroom farming. It is eaten in soups and vegetarian dishes and is popular for its rich umami flavour and meaty texture. Shiitake is also eaten for medicinal purposes, with people using it to fight cancer and inflammation, improve heart health and blood circulation.
Several other mushrooms count as edible but are often used for their other benefits. Maitake, Lion’s Mane, and Oyster mushrooms are recommended by some nutritionists and dieticians as they are low in fat, high in antioxidants and offer help with cholesterol levels, type 2 diabetes, improved mood and memory.
Beside’s being added to food, several mushrooms are being put into supplements, extracts and powders. Some people have powdered medicinal mushrooms in their first cup of coffee in the morning. Lion’s Mane, reishi, turkey tail, chaga, cordyceps, and more are being turned into supplements due to their beta-glucan content, such as lentinan and active polysaccharides. To read more about these different mushrooms, click here.
At the heart of all this is the difference in methodology and thinking between Eastern and Western medicine. The former is interested in how organs and various aspects of a person all add up to their wellness, while the latter wants to pin everything down to a single organ or cause. Until larger scale tests are done, the West won’t be satisfied with medicinal mushrooms. Meanwhile, the East continues to use these natural medicinal fungi, based on centuries of use. Some Japanese hospitals even use medicinal mushrooms as adjuvant treatment for cancer. Let’s not forget that Penicillin originally comes from a fungus!
Have you met our Farmer Jo’s yet? We think you’ll like them, they’re real fungis!
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