UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Mushrooms contain unusually high amounts of two antioxidants that some scientists suggest could help fight aging and bolster health, according to a team of Penn State researchers. 
 
 In a study, researchers found that mushrooms have high amounts of ergothioneine and glutathione, both important antioxidants, said Robert Beelman, professor emeritus of food science and director of the Penn State Center for Plant and Mushroom Products for Health. He added that the researchers also found that the amounts of the two compounds varied greatly between mushroom species. 
 
 "What we found is that, without a doubt, mushrooms are the highest dietary source of these two antioxidants taken together, and that some types are really packed with both of them," said Beelman. 
 
 Beelman said that when the body uses food to produce energy, it also causes oxidative stress because some free radicals are produced. Free radicals are oxygen atoms with unpaired electrons that cause damage to cells, proteins and even DNA as these highly reactive atoms travel through the body seeking to pair up with other electrons. 
 
 Replenishing antioxidants in the body, then, may help protect against this oxidative stress. 
 
 "There's a theory — the free radical theory of aging — that's been around for a long time that says when we oxidize our food to produce energy there's a number of free radicals that are produced that are side products of that action and many of these are quite toxic," said Beelman. "The body has mechanisms to control most of them, including ergothioneine and glutathione, but eventually enough accrue to cause damage, which has been associated with many of the diseases of aging, like cancer, coronary heart disease and Alzheimer's." 
 
 Image Robert Beelman is professor emeritus of food science at Penn State and director of the Center for Plant and Mushroom Foods for Health. IMAGE: Patrick Mansell 
 
 According to the researchers, who report their findings in a recent issue of Food Chemistry, the amounts of ergothioneine and glutathione in mushrooms vary by species with the porcini species, a wild variety, containing the highest amount of the two compounds among the 13 species tested. 
 
 "We found that the porcini has the highest, by far, of any we tested," said Beelman. "This species is really popular in Italy where searching for it has become a national pastime." 
 
 The more common mushroom types, like the white button, had less of the antioxidants, but had higher amounts than most other foods, Beelman said. 
 
 The amount of ergothioneine and glutathione also appear to be correlated in mushrooms, the researchers said. Mushrooms that are high in glutathione are also high in ergothioneine, for example. 
 
 Cooking mushrooms does not seem to significantly affect the compounds, Beelman said. 
 
 "Ergothioneine is very heat stable," said Beelman. 
 
 Beelman said that future research may look at any role that ergothioneine and glutathione have in decreasing the likelihood of neurodegenerative diseases, such as Parkinson's disease and Alzheimer's disease. 
 
 "It's preliminary, but you can see that countries that have more ergothioneine in their diets, countries like France and Italy, also have lower incidences of neurodegenerative diseases, while people in countries like the United States, which has low amounts of ergothioneine in the diet, have a higher probability of diseases like Parkinson's Disease and Alzheimer's," said Beelman. "Now, whether that's just a correlation or causative, we don't know. But, it's something to look into, especially because the difference between the countries with low rates of neurodegenerative diseases is about 3 milligrams per day, which is about five button mushrooms each day." 
 
 Beelman worked with Michael D. Kalaras, postdoctoral assistant in food sciences; John P. Richie, professor of public health sciences and pharmacology; and Ana Calcagnotto, research assistant in public health sciences. ||||| "It's preliminary, but you can see that countries that have more ergothioneine in their diets, countries like France and Italy, also have lower incidences of neurodegenerative diseases, while people in countries like the United States, which has low amounts of ergothioneine in the diet, have a higher probability of diseases like Parkinson's Disease and Alzheimer's," said Beelman. "Now, whether that's just a correlation or causative, we don't know. But, it's something to look into, especially because the difference between the countries with low rates of neurodegenerative diseases is about 3 milligrams per day, which is about five button mushrooms each day." ||||| New research reveals that mushrooms are “without a doubt” the highest known single source of the antioxidants ergothioneine and glutathione, which are both associated with anti-aging properties. 
 
 A team of researchers from Pennsylvania State University found that mushrooms are surprisingly full of both compounds, and that some of the 13 species they tested contained vastly higher levels than others. Common white button mushrooms, for instance, had low levels of the two antioxidants compared to some other mushrooms but still higher levels than your average non-mushroom food. The winner “by far” was the wild porcini mushroom, which is convenient since it’s also delicious. And even though some foods lose their health benefits when you cook them, the antioxidants in the mushrooms appear heat-stable and thus unaffected. The research was recently published in the journal Food Chemistry. 
 
 "There's a theory—the free radical theory of aging—that's been around for a long time that says when we oxidize our food to produce energy there's a number of free radicals that are produced that are side products of that action and many of these are quite toxic," said Robert Beelman, professor emeritus of food science and director of the Penn State Center for Plant and Mushroom Products for Health, in a Penn State news release. "The body has mechanisms to control most of them, including ergothioneine and glutathione, but eventually enough accrue to cause damage, which has been associated with many of the diseases of aging, like cancer, coronary heart disease and Alzheimer's." 
 
 Pennsylvania State University/Patrick Mansell 
 
 Antioxidants have been elevated to near-mythical status through the wellness movement, which can at times rely on junky science, but there’s solid research indicating they help us fight oxidative stress. Oxidative stress arises when our bodies turn food into fuel to produce the energy they need, but they can’t avoid also creating some free radicals in the process. Free radicals are simply oxygen atoms that have unpaired electrons. But as they zoom around your body looking for other single electrons to pair with they can do a lot of damage to your cells, which is why the term has become a buzzy one for scaring you into buying skincare products (sunscreen is still the business though, please wear it). 
 
 "It's preliminary, but you can see that countries that have more ergothioneine in their diets, countries like France and Italy, also have lower incidences of neurodegenerative diseases, while people in countries like the United States, which has low amounts of ergothioneine in the diet, have a higher probability of diseases like Parkinson's Disease and Alzheimer's," Beelman continued in the news release. Beelman emphasizes that the research has not determined whether the link is only correlation—a connection but not proven as a cause. 
 
 But the difference is striking, he notes: the average amount of the antioxidant seen in the diets in these countries is about 3 milligrams per day, or about five button mushrooms. ||||| While mushrooms are the highest dietary source for the unique sulfur-containing antioxidant ergothioneine, little is known regarding levels of the major biological antioxidant glutathione. Thus, our objectives were to determine and compare levels of glutathione, as well as ergothioneine, in different species of mushrooms. Glutathione levels varied >20-fold (0.11–2.41 mg/g dw) with some varieties having higher levels than reported for other foods. Ergothioneine levels also varied widely (0.15–7.27 mg/g dw) and were highly correlated with those of glutathione (r = 0.62, P < 0.001). Both antioxidants were more concentrated in pileus than stipe tissues in selected mushrooms species. Agaricus bisporus harvested during the third cropping flush contained higher levels of ergothioneine and glutathione compared to the first flush, possibly as a response to increased oxidative stress. This study demonstrated that certain mushroom species are high in glutathione and ergothioneine and should be considered an excellent dietary source of these important antioxidants.
– Hoping to age gracefully? You might consider tossing some porcini mushrooms in the shopping cart. A new study out of Penn State finds that mushrooms in general contain high levels of antioxidants ergothioneine and glutathione, and some varieties are more potent than others. "What we found is that, without a doubt, mushrooms are [the] highest dietary source of these two antioxidants taken together, and that some types are really packed with both of them," Robert Beelman says in a release. The wild porcini mushroom popular in Italy, for example, had "by far" the highest amounts of any mushroom tested. But though white button mushrooms had the least, they still had more than most other foods, reports Newsweek. And there's no need to eat mushrooms raw, because cooking doesn't seem to affect the compounds. So what makes ergothioneine and glutathione so helpful? Research is ongoing, but it's believed they protect against atoms known as free radicals, which damage or age the body over time, per New Atlas. Beelman even floats the provocative stat that countries such as Italy and France, where people typically eat the equivalent of 5 button mushrooms a day more than Americans, have lower rates of neurodegenerative diseases like Parkinson's and Alzheimer's. He cautions that it's way too early to draw any firm conclusions from that, but says researchers will explore the topic. (Glutathione might also lighten skin.)