Mushrooms are a rich source of a number of nutrients being reasonable high in both protein and carbohydrate. Mushrooms are not plants, but belong to a separate kingdom, fungus. Because of this they possess some unique chemicals that may have beneficial nutritional effects. Mushrooms are associated with a number of health benefits particularly the ability of certain mushrooms such as shiitake and maitake mushrooms to stimulate the immune system. This immune stimulating effect relates to the presence of polysaccharides in the mushrooms, which are bioavailable, and interact with human immune cells. Herbal medicine is a branch of alternative medicine that uses plants and mushrooms to treat disease. The fact that the vast majority of pharmaceutical drugs are derived from plant and fungal compounds, suggests that herbal medicine is effective. In fact, a growing body of clinical studies have investigated the effects of mushrooms of various ailments and many such studies have found them to be effective and safe.
A number of mushrooms are considered to have antidiabetic effects, and this may relate to the ability of compounds within certain mushrooms to lower blood glucose levels through insulin sensitising effects. For example, researchers have investigated the effects of water extracts of the mushrooms Cordyceps militaris (C. militaris) on the insulin function of rats that had their pancreases removed. The results of the study showed that the water extract of the mushroom was effective at improving insulin resistance by enhancing the glucose utilisation in skeletal muscle. In this way the mushroom extract functioned like exercise in that it allowed an increase uptake and utilisation of glucose from the blood by skeletal muscle. Evidence also suggests that maitake mushrooms have blood glucose lowering effects, although to date most of the research has been performed in animal experiments. However, animals are not humans and so it is unclear currently how effective mushrooms are as blood glucose lowering agents in humans.
However, the compound within maitake mushrooms that may be responsible for the blood glucose lowering effects is called beta-glucan. Beta-glucan is a type of dietary fibre (a non-digestible polysaccharide) which makes up the cell wall of many mushrooms, not just maitake mushrooms. Beta-glucan is also present in plant foods, with oats being particularly rich in beta-glucan. Studies have investigated the effects of beta-glucans on the blood glucose and blood insulin levels of overweight human subjects and found that when consumed, beta-glucans are effective at lowering both blood glucose and blood insulin levels. The beta-glucans present in mushrooms may therefore be the component of fungus that is responsible for the blood glucose lowering effects seen in animal experiments. As mushrooms are a healthy food and provide other health benefits, it is recommended that they are incorporated as part of a healthy fat loss diet, due to their potential to improve insulin sensitivity.
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