Mushrooms have a long history, but culinary and medicinally. There are over 14,000 mushrooms, only about 3,000 are edible, about 700 have known medicinal properties, and fewer than one percent are recognized as poisonous.

Mushrooms contain many micronutrients. In addition to being one of the only food sources of vitamin D, mushrooms are an excellent source of potassium (1 portabella mushroom contains the same potassium as a banana).

Mushrooms are seen as an anti-oxidant, a heart tonic and a cancer preventative. This is because they are rich in riboflavin, niacin, copper and selenium. Selenium keeps your thyroid happy, protects your muscles (especially the heart muscle) and when combined with vitamin E (found in many greens, almonds and seeds), it is a potent anti-oxidant.

Shiitake mushrooms have been used for centuries by the Chinese and Japanese to treat colds and flu. Lentinan, a beta-glucan found in shiitake mushrooms, appears to stimulate the immune system, help fight infection, and demonstrates anti-tumor activity.

You can enjoy mushrooms in many of Amy’s meals:

Brown Rice & Vegetables Bowl
Teriyaki Bowl
Asian Noodle Stir Fry
Brown Rice, Black Eyed Peas & Veggies Bowl
Amy’s Light & Lean Roasted Polenta gives you a great dose of the selenium, vitamin E combo!

And even on pizza!
Amy’s Mushroom & Olive Pizza
Amy’s No Cheese Roasted Vegetable Pizza (regular and gluten free)  Get your Shitakis here!

*Information for this article was taken from http://www.vegetarian-nutrition.info
and http://www.whfoods.com