• Controls blood pressure

• Lowers cholesterol

• Kills bacteria

• Combats cancer

• Strengthens bones

It would sure be nice if mushrooms could do what the ancient Egyptians believed -- make you live forever. Throughout history and around the world, people from Mexico to Russia have given mushrooms magical powers. In reality, there is nothing miraculous about these fungi at all, but they can make you healthier.

Although mushrooms are largely made up of water, they are also high in protein, carbohydrates and fiber. They are a potent source of vitamin D, riboflavin and niacin, plus minerals like potassium, selenium and copper. They are low in fat, salt and calories. If that is not enough, mushrooms are literally made of disease-fighting ingredients called polysaccharides -- giant chains of small sugar particles that link together to fight cancer, heart disease and infection.

Next time you are at the grocery store, keep an eye out for all the varieties of mushrooms, particularly Oyster Mushrooms. These specialty mushrooms are the most nutritious of the bunch.

Five Ways Oyster Mushrooms Keep You Healthy

Controls Cholesterol
It is no secret -- high cholesterol leads to trouble with your heart. But mushrooms may

be one way to lower your blood cholesterol by as much as 12 percent. Research from Japan shows that  mushrooms may do just that. Although people in the study ate five or more mushrooms every day to get these results, add a few to your menu and look forward to some health benefits.

Levels off Blood Pressure
Just half a cup of dried mushrooms has more potassium than a banana. That is important if you have high blood pressure, since getting enough potassium may be as necessary as cutting back on salt for getting your pressure on an even keel. 

Zaps Bacteria and Viruses
When cold and flu season next rolls around, many experts say reach for a blanket and some mushrooms. Certain chemicals in mushrooms help fight the flu virus as well as the top man-made drugs. And they seem to increase your resistance to fungi, parasites and other viruses, too. Mushrooms may also jump start your immune system into making more natural killer cells. While the connection between eating whole mushrooms and these benefits is still controversial, adding a few of these delicacies to your daily menu cannot hurt when it's cold and blustery outside.

Cans Cancer
Consider mushrooms, too, when it comes to cancer prevention. Eating certain kinds -- shiitake, maitake, oyster, and other exotic types -- may cut your risk. However, experts agree they need to do a lot more research. Most of the focus so far has been on extracts of mushroom polysaccharides, not the whole mushrooms. These chemicals, studied for twenty-five years, seem to increase cancer survival by boosting resistance to tumors and reducing harsh side effects of chemotherapy.

In addition to providing a healthy dose of polysaccharides, whole mushrooms give you selenium. Selenium is a potent antioxidant which can block cell DNA damage that may lead to cancer. Several studies show that is may prevent lung, colon, breast, throat, and prostate cancer. Eight dried shiitake mushrooms have almost all your recommended daily amount of selenium.

Builds up Your Bones
Mushrooms are the only non-animal food that can give you vitamin D -- an important fact if you are a vegetarian. Mushrooms and their vitamin D may also be important to postmenopausal women fighting osteoporosis and people who are lactose intolerant and do not get vitamin D through fortified dairy products. Look for the Oyster Mushrooms for big vitamin D boosts.

The following chart shows the nutrients for which Oyster Mushrooms is either excellent, very good or good source.

Health Benefits

Powerful Phytonutrients Promote Optimal Health

For the past twenty years, phytonutrients found in mushrooms have been the object of anti-cancer research. Most of this research has centered on carbohydrate-related parts of mushrooms, including their polysaccharide and beta-glucan components. In addition, most of this research has focused on the "specialty" mushrooms, including Oyster Mushrooms. More recently, however, the Oyster Mushrooms have been shown to have anticancer properties as well. In particular, adding these mushrooms to the diet may help protect against the development of breast cancer by preventing circulating levels of estrogen in the body from becoming excessive. (Excessive estrogen, or hyperestrogenemia, has been repeatedly linked to increased risk of breast cancer). This effect appears to be accomplished through inhibition of an enzyme in the body called aromatase (estrogen synthase) that is necessary for the production of estrogen.

The range of traditional nutrients found in mushrooms is equally impressive. Our food ranking system showed mushrooms to be an excellent source of selenium, riboflavin (vitamin B2), pantothenic acid (vitamin B5), copper, niacin (vitamin B3), potassium and phosphorous. Selenium is needed for the proper function of the antioxidant system, which works to reduce the levels of damaging free radicals in the body. Selenium is a necessary cofactor of one of the body's most important internally produced antioxidants, glutathione peroxidase, and also works with vitamin E in numerous vital antioxidant systems throughout the body. These powerful antioxidant actions make selenium helpful not only against colon cancer by protecting colon cells from cancer-causing toxins, but in decreasing asthma and arthritis symptoms and in the prevention of heart disease. In addition, selenium is involved in DNA repair, yet another way in which adequate intake of this mineral is associated with a reduced risk for cancer. Five ounces of raw crimini mushrooms provide 52.6% of the daily value (DV) for selenium.

Copper is another trace mineral that may be helpful in reducing the symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis. Copper, along with manganese (yet another trace mineral for which crimini mushrooms is a very good source), is an essential cofactor of a key oxidative enzyme called superoxide dismutase. Superoxide dismutase disarms free radicals produced within the mitochondria (the energy production factories within our cells). Copper is also necessary for the activity of lysyl oxidase, an enzyme involved in cross-linking collagen and elastin, both of which provide the ground substance and flexibility in blood vessels, bones and joints. Low dietary intake of copper may also be associated with increased fecal free radical production and fecal water alkaline phosphatase activity, risk factors for colon cancer. Five ounces of raw mushrooms supply 35.5% of the DV for copper and 10.0% of the DV for manganese.

Mushrooms are also a good source of iron, which is primarily used as part of hemoglobin, the molecule responsible for transporting and releasing oxygen throughout the body. But hemoglobin synthesis also relies on copper. Without copper, iron cannot be properly utilized in red blood cells. Fortunately, Mother Nature supplies both minerals in Oyster mushrooms.

Our food ranking system also showed these mushrooms to contain a variety of B complex vitamins. Mushrooms qualified as an excellent source of riboflavin, pantothenic acid and niacin, as well as a very good source of thiamin, and vitamin B6, and a good source of folate, all of which are nutrients that are necessary for carbohydrate, protein and lipid metabolism.

Riboflavin (vitamin B2) plays at least two important roles in the body's energy production. When active in energy production pathways, riboflavin takes the form of flavin adenine dinucleotide (FAD) or flavin mononucleotide (FMN). In these forms, riboflavin attaches to protein enzymes called flavoproteins that allow oxygen-based energy production to occur. Flavoproteins are found throughout the body, particularly in locations where oxygen-based energy production is constantly needed, such as the heart and other muscles.

Riboflavin's other role in energy production is protective. The oxygen-containing molecules the body uses to produce energy can be highly reactive and can inadvertently cause damage to the mitochondria and even the cells themselves. In the mitochondria, such damage is largely prevented by a small, protein-like molecule called glutathione. Like many "antioxidant" molecules, glutathione must be constantly recycled, and it is vitamin B2 that allows this recycling to take place. (Technically, vitamin B2 is a cofactor for the enzyme glutathione reductase that reduces the oxidized form of glutathione back to its reduced version.) Riboflavin been shown to be able to reduce the frequency of migraine headaches in people who suffer from them. Five ounces of these mushrooms supply 40.6% of the DV for riboflavin.

The B vitamin, pantothenic acid also plays an important role in the prevention of fatigue since it supports the function of the adrenal glands, particularly in times of stress. Five ounces of these mushrooms provide 21.3% of the DV for pantothenic acid.

Niacin (vitamin B3) is helpful in reducing cholesterol levels and in preventing osteoarthritis, while vitamin B6 is needed to convert homocysteine, a dangerous molecule that can directly damage blood vessel walls, into other benign substances. At high levels, homocysteine is associated with a greatly increased risk for heart attack and stroke, so  mushrooms which contain 26.9% of the DV for niacin, and 8.0% of the DV for vitamin B6 are of significant benefit.

Zinc for Optimal Immune Function

As if the above health benefits were not enough, Oyster Mushrooms were also determined to be a very good source of zinc. Zinc affects many fundamental processes, perhaps the most important of which is immune function. If one mineral was singled out for its beneficial effects on the immune system, zinc would lead the pack. A cofactor in a wide variety of enzymatic reactions, zinc is critical not only to immune function, but to wound healing, and normal cell division. Zinc also helps stabilize blood sugar levels and the body's metabolic rate, is necessary for an optimal sense of smell and taste, has been shown to prevent the blood vessel damage that can occur in atherosclerosis, and may help to reduce the painful inflammation of rheumatoid arthritis. A strong immune system depends on adequate zinc levels, so the zinc in mushrooms may also help to prevent illnesses such as recurrent colds and ear infections, and even some of the serious infections seen in patients with advanced or long-standing diabetes. Five ounces of Oyster Mushrooms provide 10.4% of the daily value for zinc.

Protection against Alzheimer's Disease and Age-related Cognitive Decline

Research published in the Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery and Psychiatry suggests that regular consumption of niacin-rich foods like mushrooms also provides protection against Alzheimer's disease and age-related cognitive decline.

Researchers from the Chicago Health and Aging Project interviewed over 3,500 Chicago residents aged 65 or older about their diet, then tested their cognitive abilities over the following six years. Those getting the most niacin from foods (22 mg per day) were 70% less likely to have developed Alzheimer's disease than those consuming the least (about 13 mg daily), and their rate of age-related cognitive decline was significantly less.

Mushrooms Found to be Top Food Source of Potent Antioxidant

L-ergothioneine, a powerful antioxidant, has been discovered in mushrooms, thanks to a new analytical method capable of identifying this antioxidant in plant material. In research presented at the 2005 American Chemical Society meeting in Washington, D.C., an American research team revealed that mushrooms contain higher concentrations L-ergothioneine than either of the two dietary sources previously believed to contain the most: chicken liver and wheat germ.

Testing mushrooms consumed in the U.S., the team found that shiitake, oyster, king oyster and maitake mushrooms contain the highest amounts of ergothioneine, with up to 13 mg in a 3-ounce serving. This equals forty times as much as is found in wheat germ.

Of the most commonly consumed mushrooms, portabellas, oyster and criminis have the most L-ergothioneine, followed by white buttons. White buttons, the most popular of all mushrooms consumed in the U.S., contain up to 5 mg per three ounce serving-12 times as much as wheat germ and 4 times more than chicken liver. And more good news, L-ergothioneine is not destroyed when mushrooms are cooked.