{"id":17753,"date":"2024-03-21T12:00:31","date_gmt":"2024-03-21T10:00:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/getitmagazine.co.za\/lowveld\/?p=17753"},"modified":"2024-05-30T15:50:53","modified_gmt":"2024-05-30T13:50:53","slug":"good-for-the-tummy-and-the-brain","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/getitmagazine.co.za\/lowveld\/blog\/2024\/03\/21\/good-for-the-tummy-and-the-brain\/","title":{"rendered":"Good for the tummy and the brain"},"content":{"rendered":"

We\u2019re made of memories \u2013 what we\u2019ve experienced, wept and laughed over, and the tools we\u2019ve learned to make us functioning, accomplished members of our families and society. So we\u2019re all naturally keen to do everything in our power to make our brains and bodies, which house our memories, function optimally. \u00a0<\/strong><\/h4>\n

The key to this may be as simple as a liberal scattering of white button mushrooms in our everyday eating. A 2015 US study submitted to the peer-reviewed journal Nutrition Research<\/em> found that \u201cdaily supplementation with mushroom (Agaricus bisporus) improves balance and working memory in aged rats.\u201d<\/p>\n

In fact, after just 8-10 weeks of eating mushrooms, there was an improvement in \u201cbalance, coordination, muscle strength, and learning and memory\u201d.\u00a0Now who wouldn\u2019t want that?<\/p>\n

Agaricus bisporus is the scientific name for your average white button mushroom, easily bought in most supermarkets. And white button, portabellini and big brown or portabello mushrooms are in fact the same mushroom, just at different stages of development.<\/p>\n

In a world with increasing rates of Alzheimer\u2019s disease (AD) and other forms of dementia, another 2022 US study published in Brain Sciences,<\/em> and \u201cconducted to bring attention to the importance of environmental factors in mitigating neurodegenerative diseases\u201d, found that the \u201cwhite button mushroom diet appeared to ameliorate the spatial memory deficits seen in transgenic AD mice as they increase in age.\u201d<\/p>\n

It would seem that adding mushrooms to your diet is a \u201cno brainer\u201d for the health of your mind and memories. Fortunately, they are really easy to incorporate, as they are not only readily available, they are a highly economical alternate to animal sources of protein in the diet.<\/p>\n

When it comes to Blue Zone eating, mushrooms have been found to be a staple. The term Blue Zone, as defined by medical website Healthline<\/em>, is \u201ca non-scientific term given to\u00a0geographic regions that are home to some of the world\u2019s oldest people.\u201d<\/p>\n

Writing on the Blue Zone site, Robert Beelman, PhD, professor of food science at Pennsylvania State University, describes mushrooms as disease-fighting stars. \u201cIn the past, food scientists like me often praised mushrooms as healthy because of what they\u00a0don\u2019t\u00a0contribute to the diet; they contain no cholesterol and gluten and are low in fat, sugars, sodium and calories,\u201d he notes.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut that was selling mushrooms short. They are very healthy foods and could have medicinal properties, because they are good sources of protein, B-vitamins, fibre, immune-enhancing sugars found in the cell walls called beta-glucans, and other bioactive compounds.<\/p>\n

\u201cImportant nutrients in mushrooms include selenium, vitamin D, glutathione and ergothioneine. All are known to function as antioxidants that can mitigate oxidative stress and all are known to decline during ageing. Oxidative stress is considered the main culprit in causing the diseases of ageing such as cancer, heart disease and dementia.\u201d<\/p>\n

So there you have it folks, mushrooms may well be the path to better memory in later years and that not-so-elusive elixir of long life we all desire.<\/p>\n

Ways to make more of mushrooms in your meal plan:<\/p>\n