Mushrooms appear in just about every type of cuisine. Mushroom are available fresh, frozen and dried. Mushrooms can be eaten both raw and cooked. Mushrooms can be part of a low-carb diet.
Mushroom Mania
Nancy Berkoff, RD, EdD, CCE
Mushrooms are unique and mysterious, as well as being a healthy and delicious food. Mushrooms are generally thought of and prepared like vegetables, but, mushrooms are fungus, a particular type of living organism that has no roots, leaves, flowers or seeds. While mushrooms can be cultivated, some of the more sought-after varieties grow only wild, making them particularly alluring.
Up to two cups of mushrooms are allowed daily during the induction phase of low carb diets, such as the Atkins and South Beach diets.. Hot appetizers, such as mushrooms caps stuffed with bacon and cheese, or side dishes, such as sautéed mushrooms with garlic and sage, can be found on restaurant menus offering low crab options.
Eat Your Fungus: It’s Good For You
Mushrooms have been valued by many cultures over the centuries for their perceived medicinal value. Recently, phytonutrients ( naturally-occurring compounds found in plants) found in mushrooms have been the object of cancer research. The white button mushroom (the "typical" mushroom found in canned mushrooms or sliced into salads), shiitake, reiki, crimini and maitake mushrooms were studied. Researchers are finding if mushrooms are added to the diet, they may possibly help protect against the development of breast cancer. It is thought that the mushroom phytonutrients may help in the prevention of excessive amounts of circulating levels of estrogen in the body. Excessive estrogen, or hyperestrogenemia, has been repeatedly linked to an increased risk of breast cancer.
The range of nutrients found in fresh and dried mushrooms is impressive. Many mushrooms are excellent sources of selenium, riboflavin, pantothenic acid (a B vitamin) and copper. Selenium is needed for the proper function of the antioxidant system, which works to reduce the levels of damaging free radicals in the body. Selenium is a necessary cofactor of one of the body\'s most important internally produced antioxidants, glutathione peroxidase, and also works with vitamin E in numerous vital antioxidant systems throughout the body. Selenium may be helpful not only against colon cancer by protecting colon cells from cancer-causing toxins, but also in possibly decreasing asthma and arthritis symptoms and in the prevention of heart disease. Eight ounces of raw Crimini or portabello mushrooms provide 107.2% of the daily value for selenium.