Eating Mushrooms May Ease Depression
Eating Mushrooms May Ease Depression, Early-stage research suggests that the psilocybin component found in psychedelic mushrooms may be effective in easing the symptoms of depression. Which has made these mushrooms a hot topic in recent years. However, common mushrooms—yes, the kind you can buy at the grocery store—might also have advantages for improving mental health.
In the Journal of Affective Disorders, new research from Penn State College of Medicine to support this claim was released. Here is what they currently know.
The Study in Detail
The Penn State researchers discovered that persons who ate mushrooms had decreased risks of developing depression using data on food And mental health gathered from more than 24,000 American adults between 2005 and 2016.
White women without Hispanic heritage who attended college were more likely to eat mushrooms. It should be mentioned that the survey’s respondents were non-Hispanic white persons in the majority (66 percent), with an average age of 45.
After taking into consideration self-reported illnesses, important risk factors, and socioeconomic and nutritional characteristics, the researchers found a statistically significant relationship between eating mushrooms and having a lower risk of developing depression. The relatively large intake of mushrooms, they added, did not appear to offer any additional benefits.
Mushrooms are a good source of fiber, vitamin B, vitamin D, potassium, and a number of antioxidants. We are aware that each of these nutrients contributes to greater emotional stability and mental health.
In supplementary research, the team investigated whether substituting a daily portion of mushrooms for red or processed meat could lower the chance of developing depression. In the end, they failed to link this dietary change to a decreased risk of depression.
The author of This is Your Brain on Food and a nutritional psychiatrist with Harvard training. Uma Naidoo, MD, thinks the study will spur more investigation into the relationship between mushroom consumption and mental health. She also draws attention to the difficulties in conducting nutrition research, particularly when using self-reported data to determine dietary memory, as was done in this study.
According to Dr. Naidoo, “A well-controlled randomized experiment would allow us to place more weight on using mushrooms as a means of improving mental health.” But this study is undoubtedly a place to start if you want to comprehend this relationship better.