A group of Penn State scientists decided to take a deep dive into the evidence behind mushroom’s cancer-blocking abilities.
In a systemic review and meta-analysis, the team carefully crunched the data from 17 different cancer studies published between 1996 and 2020.
The conclusion? Mushrooms have the potential to send your cancer risk PLUMMETING.
Their results, published in the peer-reviewed journal Advances in Nutrition, leave little doubt that fungi are fabulous.
In fact, once you see the results, if you’re not already making mushrooms a regular item on your own menu, you’re likely going to want to change that fast.
Mushrooms linked to 45% drop in cancer risk
Now, if you’re anything like me, their flavor alone makes mushrooms a frequent flyer at mealtimes. In fact, they regularly show up at breakfast, lunch, AND dinner time in our house.
But I get it. Not everybody is a fungi fan.
However, this study may be all the motivation you need to give mushrooms another try. Because according to researchers, a regular mushroom habit was associated with a 45 percent drop in cancer risk.
As I’ve explained before, mushrooms are a bit of a nutritional goldmine. They’re brimming with vitamins, nutrients, and antioxidant compounds. Fungi are a good source of vitamin D, selenium, phosphorous, B12, and protein.
And despite being so nutrient-dense their low in calories and carbs too.
But there’s one compound in particular that researchers say could be the key to mushroom’s cancer-fighting powers. Ergothioneine is an amino acid that’s found mainly in mushrooms. And it also happens to be a potent antioxidant and cellular protector, which means it’s a natural cancer fighter.
Once this unique compound is absorbed by your body, it gets transported to most of your tissues. And unlike many other similar nutrients, ergothioneine isn’t quickly metabolized. Instead, it gets retained in high concentrations in your tissues and red blood cells and is excreted far more slowly.
Potent antioxidant helps protect against cancer
In other words, our bodies find the mushroom compound valuable enough to hold onto. And when you take a look at ergothioneine’s resume of benefits, it quickly becomes obvious why.
In vitro studies show ergothioneine helps to…
- scavenge free radicals
- modulate inflammation
- protect neurons
- chelate metals such as iron and copper (decreasing oxidative damage)
- protect against UV radiation‐induced damage
- shield cells against injury (cytoprotective activities)
Porcini mushrooms contain the MOST ergothioneine by far, weighing in at 181.24 mg per 100 grams of dry weight. Followed by King Oyster, Buna Shimeji, Shiitake, Enoki, Abalone, and Willow.
Now some of those mushrooms might sound a bit on the exotic side. However, I’ve found a few of these varieties at my local grocery store. You might find them at yours too.
But here’s the thing. The researchers say you don’t have to eat the mushrooms with the highest ergothioneine to get that cancer protection.
Folks who included ANY variety of mushrooms in their daily diet, including white button, brown button, portobello, maitake, and cremini, had a lower risk of cancer. The trick is to get the right amount.
The magic number was 18 grams of mushrooms daily.
Put more mushrooms on the menu
If you know anything about measurements… or mushrooms… you’ll know that 18 grams isn’t much. It converts to about 0.06 ounces or less than a fistful of fungi. For comparison, one whole portobello mushroom weighs in at around 124 grams.
In other words, it doesn’t take many mushrooms to reach your daily requirement to get that 45 percent drop in cancer risk. A few slices in your eggs in the morning, tossed into a salad in the afternoon, or beside your main dish in the evening should do it.
I’ve reported on mushrooms helping to keep prostate cancer in check before (click here to catch up). And the researchers behind this new analysis found a strong association between mushroom munching and lower breast cancer risk.
But the scientists point out this was likely because most of the studies in the review focused on breast cancer and didn’t include other cancers. In other words, there’s every reason to believe the same association would be seen with other cancers, too, had they been the target of the studies the team included in their analysis.
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