Mushrooms are quite versatile ingredients. Many restaurants complete their dishes with a variety of them, like button mushrooms, porcini, chanterelle, and even giant puffball mushrooms.
They can be prepared in a number of ways, have different textures, and taste wildly different from how they would normally be. That’s the beauty of mushrooms.
However, that’s not all that’s great about mushrooms. They’re also known to have a few significant health benefits. Here’s some of them:
Great Source for Vitamin D
If you’ve entered into the vegan or vegetarian lifestyle and are looking for a source of vitamin D, mushrooms are the way to go. They’re one of the few non-animal sources of vitamin D and are easily accessible.
You can even increase their vitamin D content by prolonging their exposure to UV radiation either from a UV lamp or the sun. This vitamin is important for regulating the amount of calcium and phosphate in the body, keeping your bones, teeth, and muscles in good shape.
Has Immune Modulating Ingredients
Mushrooms are also known to contain active polysaccharides known as beta-glucan. Beta-glucan is a soluble fiber that activates a part of your immune system.
They’re essential for increasing your body’s ability to fight dangerous foreign bodies, like bacteria and viruses. They can even prevent the growth of tumors. Mushrooms are also rich in vitamin B, another nutrient that helps the immune system prevent cell and tissue damage.
Supports the Maintenance for Neurodegenerative Conditions
Other mushrooms are medicinal because they support the maintenance of neurodegenerative conditions. These specific types of mushrooms, like lion’s mane and reishi, are known to have healing properties, and they come in powders or supplements.
In fact, mushrooms like these have been shown to be beneficial for conditions like Alzheimer’s or Parkinson’s disease.
Great for Heart Health
Mushrooms are great ingredients to find in any restaurant’s dish because they’re excellent for your heart health. They have therapeutic properties that can help lower cholesterol in overweight adults and have nutrients to prevent cells from sticking to your blood vessel walls.
What’s more, they keep plaque from building up, protecting you from unhealthy blood pressure and circulation.
Beneficial for Gut Health
Mushrooms are beneficial for your gut health because they have compounds that act as prebiotics. Prebiotics encourage the growth of good gut bacteria, making your digestive system healthier and less prone to upsets like diarrhea.
Your body can easily digest the food that passes through it, distributing the essential nutrients it needs throughout. Studies have also shown that a healthy gut has a large role in the strength of your body’s immune defenses and the regulation of hormones.
Final Thoughts
Mushrooms are an extremely versatile dish, which is probably why they’re popular ingredients in all kinds of kitchens—be it amateur ones or professional ones in restaurants. They are versatile and carry a lot of health benefits when you ingest them. They support your gut and heart health, improve your immune system, provide a good amount of vitamin D, and help with the maintenance of diseases like Alzheimer’s or Parkinson’s.
If you’re looking for restaurants serving delicious and nutritious food, visit George’s Gyros Spot in Chesterton, Indiana. Check out our menu for a selection of great dishes you’ll be sure to love!