Mushrooms
just good for you
Singapore: Eating more mushrooms could help keep
mental decline at bay, a new study of more than 600 Singaporeans aged 60 and
above has showed.
Researchers from the National University of Singapore
(NUS) found that participants who ate more than two servings of mushrooms a
week – equivalent to 300g or about half a plate – were 57% less likely to have
mild cognitive impairment compared with those who ate less than one portion a
week.
The study was conducted between 2011 and 2017.
Announcing the findings yesterday, Dr Irwin Cheah, a
senior research fellow at the Department of Biochemistry in NUS, said this
could be because mushrooms contain high levels of a compound known as
ergothioneine.
The compound acts as an antioxidant and an
anti-inflammatory agent, and can protect brain cells from damage, Dr Cheah
said.
In a separate 2016 study also involving Dr Cheah, the
researcher found that having a deficiency of the compound could be a risk
factor for neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s.
“Humans cannot synthesise this compound, but it can be
obtained from dietary sources,” he explained.
Dr Cheah said the researchers measured a range of
foods and found that many, including beans and liver, contain low levels of the
compound.
Mushrooms, which are able to synthesise ergothioneine,
were found to have very high levels of it.
The study was part of the wider Diet and Healthy
Ageing research done in Singapore.
Those who were diagnosed with dementia or other
serious mental conditions were excluded from the mushroom study.
The participants were asked to report their regular
diets, including the intake of six types of mushrooms commonly eaten in
Singapore: golden mushrooms, oyster mushrooms, shiitake mushrooms, white button
mushrooms, dried mushrooms and canned mushrooms.
The researchers also controlled the intake of other
foods known to be correlated with cognitive function, such as vegetables, fruit
and nuts.
The participants then took tests designed to measure
cognitive abilities like memory and how quickly they can process information.
The scores were controlled for age and education
levels.
Those who scored less than 1.5 standard deviations
below the mean score of participants with similar ages and education levels
were determined to have mild cognitive impairment.
About 90 out of the 663 participants fell into this
category.
Mild cognitive impairment is the intermediate stage
between normal cognitive decline, associated with ageing, and dementia, which
is more serious and has no cure.
The study’s principal investigator, Assistant
Professor Feng Lei, said: “With the increasing number of seniors, we can expect
to see a potential dementia tsunami in the future.
“The good news is that cognitive decline can be
managed.”
Prof Feng, who is from NUS’ Department of
Psychological Medicine, said people with mild cognitive impairment can still
perform most normal functions, and that the rate of decline can be slowed
through dietary and other lifestyle interventions.
Tests showed that this group had lower levels of
ergothioneine in their bloodstreams, which also correlated with their lower
intake of mushrooms.
Prof Feng added that the researchers plan to conduct a
clinical trial on the potential benefits of pure ergothioneine alone or in
combination with other nutrients derived from plants in delaying cognitive
decline.If it is successful, the research could lead to the development of a
supplement in future. — The Straits Times/Asia News Network
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