Common mushroom varieties offer significant amounts of heart healthy fibres, say researchers investigating the carbohydrate content of mushrooms for the first time. Certain mushrooms are widely used in traditional Chinese medicine and have been investigated for their anti-cancer properties. They are also known to offer high-quality protein, vitamins, unsaturated fatty acids and fibre but a precise study of carbohydrate breakdown has not yet previously been carried out. Scientists at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign found that the six mushroom varieties tested - in raw and cooked forms and at various harvest times and maturity levels - are rich in cholesterol-lowering chitin and the heart healthy beta-glutan. The findings, published in an early online edition of the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, could help health food makers looking for a natural source of heart health fibres.
