Mushrooms are common fungi that are both tasty and nutritionally beneficial. Taiwanese nutritionist Chang Yi-ting recently shared that mushrooms are rich in polysaccharides that can help fight cancer, lower cholesterol, and enhance immune functions. They are also low in sodium, high in potassium, and rich in various minerals. Moderate consumption of mushrooms can help stabilize blood pressure.
Common mushrooms include shiitake, French horn, enoki, oyster, and brown beech, but the nutritional value and efficacy of different mushrooms are quite different. Chang Yi-ting summed up the nutritional content of these five common mushrooms.
Shiitake Mushroom
Shiitake mushrooms are rich in vitamin D, polysaccharides, dietary fiber, and selenium, which can help lower blood pressure and cholesterol. In addition, the polysaccharide (lentinan) in shiitake mushrooms has been found to inhibit the growth of cancer cells and improve the activity of immune T cells in animal experiments….