What are shiitake mushrooms?

Shiitake is edible mushrooms native to East Asia, shitake mushrooms, and we have one of the best dried shiitake mushroom, shiitake mushroom recipes

They’re tan to dark brown, with caps that grow between 2 and 4 inches (5 and 10 cm).

While typically eaten like vegetables, shiitake are fungi that grow naturally on decaying hardwood trees.

Around 83% of shiitake are grown in Japan, although the United States, Canada, Singapore, and China also produce them

You can find them fresh, dried, or in various dietary supplements.

The nutrients in 4 dried shiitake (15 grams) are (2Trusted Source):

• Calories: 44
• Carbs: 11 grams
• Fiber: 2 grams
• Protein: 1 gram
• Riboflavin: 11% of the Daily Value (DV)
• Niacin: 11% of the DV
• Copper: 39% of the DV
• Vitamin B5: 33% of the DV
• Selenium: 10% of the DV
• Manganese: 9% of the DV
• Zinc: 8% of the DV
• Vitamin B6: 7% of the DV
• Folate: 6% of the DV
• Vitamin D: 6% of the DV

In addition, shiitake contain many of the same amino acids as meat .

They also boast polysaccharides, terpenoids, sterols, and lipids, some of which have immune-boosting, cholesterol-lowering, and anticancer effects.

The amount of bioactive compounds in shiitake depends on how and where the mushrooms are grown, stored, and prepared dried shiitake mushroom

Nutrition Facts

The shiitake is part of the Lentinula edodes species. It’s an edible mushroom native to East Asia. Because of its health benefits, it has been considered a medicinal mushroom in traditional herbal medicine, mentioned in books written thousands of years ago.

Shiitakes have a meaty texture and woodsy flavor, making them the perfect addition to soups, salads, meat dishes and stir fries.

As far as nutrition goes, 100 grams of shiitake mushrooms contain about.

• 34 calories
• 0.5 gram fat
• 6.8 grams carbohydrates
• 2.5 grams dietary fiber
• 2.4 grams sugar
• 2.2 grams protein
• 4 milligrams niacin (19 percent DV)
• 1.5 milligrams pantothenic acid (15 percent DV)
• 0.2 milligrams vitamin B6 (15 percent DV)
• 0.2 milligrams riboflavin (13 percent DV)
• 18 international units vitamin D (4 percent DV)
• 0.2 milligrams manganese (12 percent DV)
• 112 milligrams phosphorus (11 percent DV)
• 5.7 micrograms selenium (8 percent DV)
• 0.1 milligrams copper (7 percent DV)
• 1 milligram zinc (7 percent DV)
• 304 milligrams potassium (6 percent DV)
• 20 milligrams magnesium (5 percent DV)
• 0.4 milligrams iron (2 percent DV)

1. Fight Obesity

Certain components of the shiitake mushroom have hypolipidaemic (fat-reducing) effects, such as eritadenine and b-glucan, a soluble dietary fiber that’s also found in barley, rye and oats. Studies have reported that b-glucan can increase satiety, reduce food intake, delay nutrition absorption, and reduce plasma lipid (fat) levels.

A 2011 study published in the Journal of Obesity examined the effects of shiitake mushrooms on plasma lipid profiles, fat dispositions, energy efficiency and body fat index. We fed fats a high-fat diet for a six-week period. Researchers found significant effects of dietary intervention on body weight gain. Rats on a high dose of shiitake mushroom diet (which involved adding mushroom powder to a high-fat diet) had 35 percent lower body weight gains than rats on low and medium shiitake mushroom diets. Rats on the high dose shiitake mushroom diet also had significantly glowed total fat masses and had a trend of lower fat accumulation.

The researchers concluded by suggesting that shiitake mushrooms can help prevent body weight gain, fat deposition and plasma triacylglycerol when added to a high-fat diet. This encourages an effort to pursue human studies that examine the efficacy of shiitake mushrooms for the prevention and treatment of obesity and related metabolic disorders.

2. Support Immune Function

Mushrooms can boost the immune system and combat many diseases by way of providing important vitamins, minerals and enzymes. A 2015 study published in the Journal of the American College of Nutrition tested 52 healthy males and females, aged 21–41 years, to determine if shiitake mushrooms could improve human immune function shitake mushrooms. The study involved a four-week parallel group trial that involved participants consuming either five or 10 grams of mushrooms daily.

The results suggest that consuming shiitake mushroom recipes shrooms improved cell effector function and improved gut immunity. There was also a reduction of inflammation for mushroom consumption shitake mushrooms,

3. Destroy Cancer Cells

Research suggests that shiitake mushrooms help fight cancer cells and the lentinan in shiitakes help heal chromosome damage caused by anticancer treatments. This suggests shiitakes could be used as a potential natural cancer treatment.

A 2006 study published in the Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine investigated the potential roles of an ethyl acetate fraction from shiitake mushrooms. The study involved two human breast carcinoma cell lines, one human nonmalignant breast epithelial cell line, and two myeloma cell lines. The results suggest that shiitake mushrooms could inhibit growth in tumor cells with their mycochemical value. Shiitake mushroom successfully inducted apoptosis, the process of programmed cell death.

4. Support Cardiovascular Health

Shiitake mushrooms have sterol compounds that interfere with the production of cholesterol in the liver. They also contain potent phytonutrients that help keep cells from sticking to blood vessel walls and forming plaque buildup, which maintains healthy blood pressure and improves circulation shiitake mushroom recipes.

A study conducted at Tohoku University in Japan found that shiitake mushrooms prevented blood pressure increase in hypertensive rats. Shiitake feeding resulted in a decrease in VLDL and HDL cholesterol, whereas maitake mushroom feeding caused a decrease in VLDL cholesterol only shitake mushrooms.

5. Contain Antimicrobial Properties

A 2011 study at the UCL Eastman Dental Institute in London tested shiitake’s antimicrobial effects on gingivitis, a preventable disease that involves inflammation of the gums because of the buildup of a microbial biofilm at the gingival margin. We compared the effectiveness of shiitake mushrooms to that of the active component in the leading gingivitis mouthwash containing chlorhexidine dried shiitake mushroom .

We investigated the total bacterial numbers as well as the numbers of eight key organisms in the oral community after treatment. The results indicated that shiitake mushroom extract lowered the numbers of some pathogenic organisms without affecting the organisms associated with health, unlike chlorhexidine, which had a limited effect on all organisms.

6. Boost Energy and Brain Function

Shiitake mushrooms are a significant source of B vitamins, which help support adrenal function and turn nutrients from food into useable energy. They also help balance hormones naturally and break through the brain fog to maintain focus all day long — even improving cognitive performance shitake mushrooms.

Millions of Americans come up short on one or more of the B vitamins, and that causes energy slumps, unhealthy blood cell and adrenal effects, and foggy thinking. Adding shiitake mushrooms to your diet can give you the extra boost of B vitamins that you need to avoid a deficiency shiitake mushroom recipes.

7. Provide Vitamin D

Although vitamin D is best got from the sun, shiitake mushrooms can also provide a decent source of this essential vitamin. Vitamin D is important for bone health and reducing the risk of heart disease, diabetes, autoimmune diseases and some types of cancer. It’s vital for the absorption and metabolism of calcium and phosphorus, too.

Getting ample supply of vitamin D also helps regulate and support the immune system, maintain healthy body weight, maintain brain function as your age, reduce the severity of asthma symptoms, reduce the risk of developing rheumatoid arthritis in women, and reduce the risk of developing multiple sclerosis. Mushrooms, and wild-caught salmon, raw dairy and eggs, are the best vitamin D-rich foods shitake mushrooms.

8. Promote Skin Health

When selenium is taken with vitamins A and E, it can help reduce the severity of acne and the scarring that can occur afterward. A hundred grams of shiitake mushrooms contain 5.7 milligrams of selenium, which is 8 percent of your daily value. That means shiitake mushrooms act as a natural acne treatment.

In an open trial, it gave 29 patients 0.2 milligram of selenium and 10 milligrams of tocopheryl succinate for their acne twice daily for six to 12 weeks. After treatment, the patients noticed positive results. The zinc in shiitake mushrooms also promotes immune function and reduces buildup of DHT to improve skin healing dried shiitake mushroom .

Shiitake Mushrooms vs. Other Mushrooms

How does the shiitake stack up with other mushrooms? Let’s take a quick snapshot shitake mushrooms.

• Shiitake: Fights cancer cells and infectious disease, boosts the immune system, promotes brain function, and serves as a source of B vitamins.
• Maitake: Improves the health of AIDS patients and regulates blood sugar levels of diabetics. May reduce hypertension and boosts the immune system.
• Reishi: Fights inflammation, liver disease, fatigue, tumor growth and cancer. Improves skin disorders and soothes digestive problems, stomach ulcers and leaky gut syndrome.
• Cordyceps: Has anti-aging effects and boosts immune function. Improves stamina and athletic performance, acts as a natural aphrodisiac, fights diabetes and improves liver function.shitake mushrooms.