Effects of consuming white button and oyster mushrooms within a healthy Mediterranean-style dietary pattern on changes in subjective indexes of brain health or cognitive function in healthy middle-aged and older adults
Limited research indicates that mushroom consumption could improve brain health. Antioxidants and bioactive substances found in mushrooms have the ability to penetrate the blood-brain barrier and affect vital neurological processes. The effects of a U.S. Mediterranean-style diet (MED), with or without mushrooms, on markers of brain health and well-being were assessed in this study by Uffelman et al. (2024) using a randomized controlled feeding experiment. For eight weeks, sixty people (average age 46 ± 12 years, BMI 28.3 ± 2.84 kg/m2) without severe depression were given either a control diet (breadcrumbs) or a completely regulated MED diet that included 84 g/d of mushrooms (white button and oyster mushrooms alternate days). Behavioral tests tested cognition, while questionnaires evaluated mood, well-being, anxiety, and depression at baseline and after the intervention. Immediate memory and self-reported vigor/activity were both enhanced by the MED diet, both with and without mushrooms. Other aspects of neuropsychological function showed mixed results, and no changes were noted in other brain health indexes. The results indicate that middle-aged and older persons may benefit from a healthy MED-style diet, with or without mushrooms, in terms of increased vigor/activity and instantaneous memory. [NPID: Fungi, Agaricus bisporus, Pleurotus ostreatus, health-related quality of life]
Year: 2024
