Mushrooms are nutritional fungi

Jan 12, 2004

KINGS and warriors ate it to enhance immunity and optimise performance. Brides and grooms did so to increase sexual potency on the wedding night

By Fred Ouma and Christopher Kiwawulo

KINGS and warriors ate it to enhance immunity and optimise performance. Brides and grooms did so to increase sexual potency on the wedding night.

Others used it to treat fatigue and debility. Such are the surprising nutritional and medicinal values of mushrooms, the higher order organisms of the world of fungi.

There are approximately 300 species of edible mushrooms in the world. Scientific research has shown that edible mushrooms contain high-class proteins, vitamins and minerals essential for normal functioning of the body.

Contrary to the widely held myth that mushrooms have no food value, Paul Nampala, a lecturer in the department of Botany at Makerere University, says they are nutritionally sound. Even the least nutritive mushrooms are comparable to some common vegetables.

“But due to low levels of carbohydrates and calories, Western nutritionists mistakenly considered them of no food value,” Nampala says.

Some mushrooms also have been proved to protect the body from the life-threatening side effects of medical treatment.

Mushrooms are the fruiting body of fungus, much like a mango fruit is to the mango tree. The actual mushroom “tree” is a fine thread-like network called mycelium that grows horizontally underground.

It is known scientifically that foods with plenty of polysaccharides (complex carbohydrates, such as mushrooms) activate the immune system and therefore help the body fight off infections.

Federica Nshemereirwe, a senior Agricultural Officer in charge of mushrooms in the Ministry of Agriculture says research at the Joint Clinical Research Centre showed that a mushroom species called Agaricus blazei Murill (ABM) is effective in boosting the health of HIV/AIDS patients. However, presently this species is not grown in Ugandan.

In Sao Paulo, Brazil, where ABM is indigenous, people live long with many people exceeding 100 years. They rarely suffer from cancers, heart diseases, diabetes and viral/bacterial diseases among others. A volunteer who has used ABM therapy said it reduced his viral load (virus concentration in blood) and increased his CD4 count (a measure of the immune system strength).

“I have never used any ARVs. But my viral load dropped from 8,000 to 6,000. The CD4 count raised from 522 to 605, and I experienced no side effects during the course of treatment,” says the volunteer. He takes ABM powder mixed with water, four times a day.

Mushrooms have a high percentage of complex carbohydrates that are difficult for humans to digest.

“In order to break down the cell walls and release the nutrients, mushrooms must be cooked to break many cell walls, but not all,” says Dr. Shoji Shibata, a professor in the pharmacological department of Tokyo University and Dr. Teuto Ikegwa of the National Cancer Centre. The duo jointly researched the pharmacological effects of ABM.

Despite the great benefits that could be derived from the various mushroom species, the culture of mushroom cultivation is undeveloped in Uganda. Dr. Kibirige Ssebunya, the State minister for agriculture, says in Uganda the only cultivated species is oyster mushroom, Pleurotus ostreatus. Other species grow in the wild and many are disappearing due to environmental degradation.

Ssebunya says the disappearance of such species means not only the loss of biodiversity, but also means loss of medicinal and food resources.

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