Studies have found that ergosterol and glutathione in mushrooms can help fight aging and promote health

Recently, published in the Journal of food chemistry, researchers from Pennsylvania State University found that mushrooms contain two abnormally high levels of antioxidants - ergotoxin and glutathione, which can help fight aging and promote health (http:// When the body uses food to produce energy, it can lead to oxidative stress, which in turn produces free radicals, the researchers said Free radicals are oxygen atoms with unpaired electrons that damage cells, proteins and even DNA, because these highly reactive atoms travel through the body in search of pairing with other electrons There are many physiological mechanisms that can control oxidative stress in human body, but the accumulation of free radicals over the years will eventually damage human health and cause a variety of diseases, such as cancer, coronary heart disease and cognitive diseases of the elderly The researchers evaluated 13 species of mushrooms and found that ergotinin and glutathione were the highest in the wild mushrooms of two Boletus species Although the antioxidant content of white mushroom is lower than that of Boletus, it is much higher than other foods The researchers also found that there is a correlation between ergot sulfur content and glutathione content in mushrooms For example, when ergot sulfur content in a mushroom is high, the glutathione content will not be low At the same time, cooking mushrooms does not affect the antioxidant ingredients, because ergot sulfur is very heat-resistant, which is a welfare for people who like mushrooms Future studies may consider ergot sulfur and other health functions of glutathione, such as its role in reducing neurodegenerative diseases, including Parkinson's and Alzheimer's, the researchers said