Posts Tagged ‘selenium’

Weekly Links: Mushroom News from Around the Web

The New Superfoods Fitness highlights the common white button mushroom as one of ten lesser-known superfoods that will keep your body healthy and slim – without costing you a fortune at the grocery store. Swapping meat for mushrooms is highlighted as a successful weight-loss strategy, and the most common of all ‘shrooms is recognized as one of few natural food sources of vitamin D.

Vitamin D levels dip San Francisco Chronicle interviews the world’s leading vitamin D expert, Dr. Michael Holick. Lack of vitamin D can lead to heart disease, cancer, depression, insomnia, diabetes and chronic pain so be sure to get adequate amounts of this crucial nutrient. Adequate daily vitamin D intake may be hard to come by as this nutrient is often not found naturally in foods. But, rest assured that all mushroom contain D – they’re the only source in the produce section.

The Trading Post 2009’s Taste of Home “Mushrooms: Every Day, Every Way” recipe contest winner is highlighted. Have you entered this year’s contest? If you’re lacking inspiration, give this winning portabella burger recipe a try.

EAT YOUR VEGGIES: Adding vegetarian dishes to the menu will benefit your health Vegetarian diets are becoming more common these days. They’re not simple though, without a little planning the risk of depriving yourself of key nutrients is high. But if done right, a vegetarian diet can be satisfying and good for your waistline. A tip the Bradenton Herald offers readers is one of our weight-loss favorites – substitute meat with mushrooms. Studies have shown that substituting four ounces of mushrooms for four ounces of meat once a week for one year could save more than 18,000 calories and nearly 3,000 grams of fat – that adds up to more than five pounds!

Chef’s kitchen: Try an Herbed Mushroom Tulip The Olympian’s resident chef admits she used to avoid mushrooms at all costs but now she just can’t get enough. Chocked full of selenium, B vitamins and fiber, mushrooms are not only a nutritional powerhouse but they also add flavor to everyday meals.

Mushroom has a lot to offer Our friends up in Canada agree that there’s no reason to not love mushrooms. No fat, hardly any carbs or calories, low in sodium – mushrooms lack all the bad stuff and provide nothing but the good: vitamins, minerals, fiber and flavor.

Weekly Links: Mushroom News from Around the Web

Dr. Sunshine New York Times Magazine interviews Dr. Michael Holick, MD, PhD, the renowned vitamin D expert, to set the story straight on vitamin D. Many topics are covered, but the fact that mushrooms are the only fruit or vegetable in the produce aisle to contain this important nutrient still makes the cut.

Bruschetta With Wild Mushrooms, Ricotta And Green Garlic Though we’d prefer to see this recipe call for some white buttons or baby bellas in place of wild mushrooms, KGO-TV still covers the gamut of health benefits in our beloved mushrooms. Mushrooms truly have it all: they’re low in fat and calories, but still rich in a variety of nutrients. For example, mushrooms are an excellent source of potassium – one portabella even contains more than a medium banana! Copper, riboflavin, niacin and selenium are among the other nutrients mentioned.

Katy Perry eats mushrooms to stay slim Even though musician Katy Perry is happily engaged, it turns out her fiancé is not the only “fun guy” on her radar: she loves fungi, too! Katy says, “I love mushrooms. I could eat a ton of them. I really love truffles but I hardly ever get them. Mushrooms in general though are so healthy and good for you. I can’t get enough.”

Figure flattering mushrooms If you’re trying shed a few pounds before summer, here’s a tip from nutrition expert Keri Glassman: add more mushrooms to your meals. Not only will your figure benefit but also your health. Mushrooms are chocked full of important nutrients that – because they’re a source of the antioxidant selenium – can help strengthen your immune system. They’re low in calories, fat-free and very low in sodium. Plus mushrooms are the only fruit or vegetable with vitamin D.

Weekly Links: Mushroom News from Around the Web

Best and Worst Foods Keri Glassman, MS, RD, CDN tells “Early Show” viewers to always “Go for those ’shrooms!” She makes note of the fact that it’s not always those bright colored veggies that pack a nutritious punch – those that are light in color do too, like mushrooms! Light-colored mushrooms are the leading source of the antioxidant selenium in the produce aisle.

Trend Alert: The ‘Fifth Taste’ Is Coming On Strong, As More People Say I Want My Umami We’ve heard that this is the year for umami and don’t you bet that WE of all people are excited! If you haven’t heard, umami is the savory fifth taste found naturally in mushrooms. Delish.  

How to Order a Healthier Pizza The Baltimore Sun helps readers make healthier pizza choices by advising to load up on the veggies – in particular mushrooms because they are nutrient-packed, high in fiber and low in calories.

Keri Glassman and The O2 Diet Glassman touts her love for mushrooms again in this segment featured on “700 Club.” She highlights mushrooms as the only fruit or veggie with vitamin D, which is very important for immunity. Also discussed are the benefits of swapping meat for mushrooms – if you take away about four ounces of meat a weak and substitute it with mushrooms, you can lose about five pounds over one year!

Weekly Links: Mushroom News from Around the Web

Reduce fat with super swaps Wendy Bazilian, PhD, RD recommends ways to switch out foods that lend less nutritional value for those high in antioxidants and flavor in order to reduce our calorie, fat, sugar and sodium intake. Instead of a regular burger, throw a portabella cap on the grill! Studies have shown substituting four ounces of mushrooms for four ounces of meat once a week for one year could save more than 18,000 calories and nearly 3,000 grams of fat – that adds up to more than five pounds. Another benefit of shrooms is their antioxidant power: mushrooms are the leading source of selenium in the produce aisle, and they contain ergothioneine, two potent antioxidants that have immunity benefits.

Recipes that Fight Belly Fat More magazine highlights our recipe for Portabella Omelet Topped with Portabella Bacon as one that fights belly fat. Why? Vitamin D. Deficiencies of vitamin D have been linked to both obesity and abdominal fat, so eat your shrooms to help shape up for bikini season (which scarily isn’t too far away).

Diet Detective: Hearty and Healthy Calorie Bargain Recipes In the healthy spaghetti and meatballs recipe, mushrooms and other veggies are incorporated into the meatball mixture for a nutrient boost, and to save calories. KPIC-TV touts mushrooms as a good source of crucial B vitamins that help convert food into energy. They also note mushrooms’ selenium content, an important antioxidant to help maintain the immune system.

Less meat, more taste Portabella burgers are common in restaurants, but don’t be afraid to make one at home – they’re super easy to make! Check out this recipe from the News-Leader, which also notes mushrooms as a great source of selenium, potassium, and B vitamins riboflavin and niacin.

Weekly Links: Mushroom News from Around the Web

Immune-boosting foods you’ll love Mushrooms are great for maintaining a healthy immune system. They are rich in beta-glucans, selenium, ergothioneine and vitamin D – a winning combination of nutrients to ward off cold and flu season! WFMJ-TV recommends eating about one cup of mushrooms every day – we agree!

The 02 Diet: Superfoods Rule Keri Glassman, MS, RD, author of the hot new book, The O2 Diet, talks with LX New York about ways to improve your diet, to make you feel energetic, thin and beautiful. Glassman recommends improving diet through inclusion rather than exclusion. Pack your meals full of foods rich in antioxidants, like mushrooms – the leading source of selenium in the produce aisle!

Appetite for Health Julie Upton, MS, RD, CSSD discusses ways to get more vitamin D through diet. Mushrooms are one of the only natural sources of vitamin D (the only fruit or veggie with it!) and like our skin, they can produce vitamin D when they’re exposed to light. The most popular types of mushrooms – buttons, criminis and portabellas – have 1-97% of the vitamin D you need. Put them atop pizzas, in sauces, sautéed as a side dish – mushrooms are so versatile they compliment almost any everyday favorite meal.

Weekly Links: Mushroom News from Around the Web

Surprise: Mushrooms full of nutrients Don’t be fooled by mushrooms and their lack of color – just because mushrooms are white does not mean they are not nutritional powerhouses. The Detroit Free Press alerts readers of this common misperception, and notes that mushrooms are in fact dense in nutrients. Not only do they supply B vitamins like riboflavin, niacin and pantothenic acid for energy, but they also are rich in folic acid, iron, potassium and antioxidants like selenium. Get these nutrients by giving their recipe for Mushroom Almond Paté a try at your New Year’s Eve party!

Wild Mushroom Mix Enjoy this vegan and gluten-free mushroom mixture atop pizzas, as a dip with crostinis for an appetizer, or even use it as the base for a hearty mushroom soup! The versatility is endless!

Top 10 health tips for 2010 Our friends from Canada over at The Daily Observer share the most important health tips for 2010. Aside from vitamin D topping the list (be sure to eat your mushrooms!), washing your hands to prevent catching airborne illnesses and measuring your waistline rather than hopping on a scale is recommended. Belly fat is particularly dangerous, possibly leading to a higher risk for heart disease, diabetes and high blood pressure. Measuring tapes are less expensive than scales anyway…

Drug from mushroom may help treat cancer Unrelated to our research at City of Hope on white button mushrooms and breast cancer, researchers at the University of Nottingham have discovered that a wild mushroom native to China, cordyceps, may be effective in treating cancer as well. “The researchers say low-dose cordycepin (the medication that includes cordyceps) seems to inhibit the uncontrolled growth and division of cells and at high doses it also inhibits growth by stopping cells from sticking together.” Aren’t mushrooms amazing?