In the news

Shrooms, anyone?

            Health practitioners in ancient times and primitive places have regarded mushrooms as having medicinal as well as nutritional properties. Of the more than two million (!) species of mushrooms, about 2000 are edible. Over the millennia about 130 therapeutic properties have been attributed to them. In their search for nutrients that fight inflammation, inhibit cancer and slow the aging process, scientists are exploring this family of plants like never before.

            Various components of mushrooms have significant positive effects on immune function that include increasing the numbers as well as the activity of several types of cells, perhaps explaining why they have an anticancer effect. By reducing inflammation they slow the aging process in animal studies. A popular cholesterol-lowering drug is derived from mushrooms, leading to the hope that other such agents will emerge from further research.

            The human application of the seeming cornucopia of health benefits is limited by the paucity of long-term studies involving large numbers of people. Although interest in mushroom research is increasing within the scientific community, we are probably years away from its wide application. That should not keep us from taking advantage of them.

            Mushrooms are among the most nutritious of plant species, rich in antioxidants, cholesterol-free and with a high protein content. When you Google “mushroom recipes” you’ll find a mouth-watering array of dishes that feature mushrooms. They vary widely in flavor and deserve a more prominent place in our diet. There is no downside to increasing our intake of them.

Lifestyle

What are we doing wrong?

            Several adverse — read frightening – trends have emerged since the middle of the last century: an exponential rise in type two diabetes, overweight and obesity affecting more than eighty percent of Americans, colorectal cancer in younger and younger people, autism spectrum disorder now affecting one in about forty children, mental illness in children that is overwhelming healthcare facilities, a doubling of asthma since 1970.

            More than the horrendous cost of all these previously rare or non-existent conditions, the effects on our well-being as a nation carry a heavy toll. I’d like to offer my take on some – certainly not all – the reasons for this health upheaval. Consider which of these you might be able to change in your and your family’s lifestyle.

            Nutrition. Every time I go into a supermarket or Walmart the first items past which I have to run a gauntlet are cookies, cakes and sweets. Strategically placed, of course, just in case you made the mistake of going there feeling a little hungry.      Have you noticed that the produce section is only a fraction as large as the area containing packaged foods. Why bother allotting more valuable floor space to stuff that most people buy little of?

            The Standard American Diet (SAD) is lacking (meaning that fewer than half of us get the recommended amount) of three absolutely essential nutrients: vitamin D, magnesium and omega-3 fatty acids. They all have multiple functions that include bone health, heart health and immune function.

            Since the middle of the last century our plant foods have been declining in nutrient content thanks to mega-farming that favors chemical fertilizers instead of compost, machine-friendly fruits and vegetables that don’t have to be hand-picked, and varieties with a long shelf life but fewer nutrients and little flavor. (Recommended: Eating on the wild side, by Jo Robinson, an excellent explanation of what is happening to our plant foods and how to find the varieties that are still worth eating. Available on Amazon, where you will find a more detailed description.)

            Non-nutrient additives. IMHO the combination of nutrient deficiency and abundance of chemical additives is a major factor in the rise of cancer and other conditions.

            Physical activity. Nag, nag, nag – sometimes I feel like Jeremiah of the Bible. But it’s clear that even the vast majority of healthcare practitioners don’t recognize the fact that the human body demands regular, moderately intense physical activity even in very old age in order to avoid today’s lifestyle diseases: type two diabetes, osteoporosis, coronary artery disease, stroke and cancer. The first four are entirely absent among hunter-gatherers, i.e., uncivilized humans, and 85 percent of cancers have nothing to do with genetics but are the direct result of our “civilized” lifestyle. That last statement is the pronouncement of the American Cancer Society, not my opinion.

            There are other lifestyle-destroying factors, of course, including our brain-stunting overindulgence of screen time, smoking (now there are three ways to damage our lungs – tobacco, vaping and marijuana) and drugs, both legal and not.

            I’m hopeful that the tide is turning. I see more and more middle-aged and older folks at the fitness center. The government is finally getting rid of some food additives. Anti-obesity drugs, while not a great solution, are helping millions of people lower their risk of chronic disease. And with luck, physicians will finally figure out that preventing diseases makes more sense than hurling medicine at them.