Mushrooms are mysterious creatures to some of us. When a client expresses disdain over including them in a Metabolic Balance recipe, I completely understand! There they are: little brown odd-looking caps and stems that have a dusty feel, grow in damp shadowy places and are called, “Fungi”. Often however, after becoming more familiar with the delicious friendly fungi, she’s open to not only cooking them but understanding and appreciating their health benefits!
A Billion Years of Evolution
First, did you know that the earliest evidence of a human eating mushrooms was 18,100 years ago? Some of you know that I worked in the field as an Archaeologist! I cannot resist reaching back into the past to understand the depth of history our foods have had in civilization. Two spores of two species of mushrooms were found on the teeth of a 30-40 year old Stone Age prehistoric woman in the El Miron cave in Cantabria, Spain! She’s coined, “The Red Lady of El Miron”, and was buried in an elaborate grave.
Secondly, did you know that Mushrooms are more closely related to humans than plants? How can this be? Fungi have their very own Kingdom now (there are five: Red Algae, Green Plants, Animals, Stramenopiles and FUNGI!) and studies show a one-celled organism links us genetically over a billion years ago!
A Power Food!
Thirdly, did you know that edible Mushrooms are not only low in calories, fat-free, cholesterol free, low in sodium, Gluten-free, rich in micro nutrients and B vitamins? Among the potential benefits:
• Weight loss
• Increase Vitamin D levels
• Stronger immune system
On top of all that good news, eating Mushrooms may well improve your cognition! Yes, that’s right. Brain health. And we are all striving for that! Those are recent findings of a study from the Department of Psychological Medicine and Department of Biochemistry and the NUS Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine in Singapore published in the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease. People who eat two servings of mushrooms a week may be half as like to develop mild cognitive impairment. (MCI)
“This correlation is surprising and encouraging. It seems that a commonly available single ingredient could have a dramatic effect on cognitive decline,” said Assistant Professor Feng Lei, who is from the NUS Psychological Medicine, and the lead author. (Article in BBC)
Related Post
Cucumber and Dried Shiitake Mushroom Salad Recipe
Stay tuned for Part 2!
Myra Nissen, CCH
Copyright © 2019–2025, Myra Nissen.
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This article was brought to you by Myra Nissen, CCH, RSHom(NA), Board Certified Classical Homeopath. Myra teaches women how to recognize their body’s unique needs and cues and uses Homeopathy to help empower women to take control of their bodies, health and well-being. Find out more, visit her blog www.myranissen.com/blog.