Long Term Consumption of Mushrooms and Algae May Reduce Risk of All-Cause Mortality

by | Nov 14, 2022 | Aging, Botanicals

Written by Taylor Woosley, Staff Writer. Results of this large prospective cohort study show that participants who maintained regular intake pattern overtime of mushroom and algae consumption appeared to be inversely associated with all-cause mortality (HR = 0.86, 95% CI, 0.76, 0.98), as compared with participants who had rare intake patterns. 

fruits and vegetables - mushroomsFunctional foods, such as mushrooms, have been consumed by many cultures for centuries because of their role in a healthful diet1. Mushrooms have carbohydrates, fiber, protein, essential amino acids, unsaturated fatty acids, vitamins, and minerals with nutritional benefits2. They are also rich in bioactive compounds, including polysaccharides such as β-glucans, selenium, and the crucial sulfur-containing antioxidants ergothioneine and glutathione which are thought to play a significant role in detoxification and the promotion of healthy aging3. Various epidemiological studies have shown evidence that consumption of mushrooms may protect against a variety of chronic diseases4.

Additionally, algae have been consumed for millennia throughout the world as food due to their unique organoleptic properties and health benefits5. It contains bioactive properties including lipids, phenolic compounds, and is an abundant source of vitamins and minerals6. Algae acts as both an antioxidant scavenger and anti-inflammatory lipid mediator due to the carotenoids and ꙍ-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids7.

Shen et al. conducted a prospective cohort study using data from the Chinese Longitudinal Healthy Longevity Survey (CLHLS) to examine potential associations of mushrooms and algae consumption with all-cause mortality. Data was observed from the 2008 cycle and included 13,156 subjects, when data on mushrooms and algae consumption were first included. Dietary intake was measured by a food frequency questionnaire (FFQ) through an interview. The FFQ also included dietary data of other major food groups. Participants were asked how frequently they consume mushrooms and algae over the last year and at age 60, respectively. Intake frequencies were recorded in various categories, with a further defined 9 patterns of mushroom and algae intake from the age of 60 to the study baseline to capture the long-term temporal patterns.

Covariates such as demographic characteristics including age, gender, ethnicity, and education, along with lifestyle factors (smoking status, alcohol consumption) were included. Health conditions were assessed by self-reported history. Chi-squared tests for categorical variables and analysis of variance (ANOYA) for continuous variables were used to compare baseline characteristic differences of the study population across mushrooms and algae consumption groups. Time-dependent Cox proportional hazard models were utilized to estimate hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (95% CIs) for mortality associated with mushrooms and algae consumption.

Among the participants, the mean age was 86.9 ± 11.4 years at baseline and 42.6% were male. The distribution of intake frequency of mushrooms and algae at baseline was 47.8% for rare consumption group, 41.4 % for occasional consumption, and 11.0% for regular consumption. Significant findings of the prospective cohort study are as follows:

  • After multivariate adjustment for potential confounders, an inverse association between higher intake frequency of mushrooms and algae and all-cause mortality was observed, as compared with rare consumption group.
  • HRs for death were 0.86 (95% CI, 0.80, 0.93) for participants who consumed mushrooms and algae at least once per week and 0.93 (95% CI, 0.89, 0.98) for those with occasional consumption (p for trend = 0.0001).
  • Those in occasional-to-rare and regular-to-occasional groups had an increased risk of mortality with HRs (95% CI) of 1.18 (1.09, 1.28) and 1.15 (0.95, 1.40), respectively.

Findings of this large prospective cohort study show an inverse association between regular consumption of mushrooms and algae and risk of all-cause mortality, after adjusting for sociodemographic, lifestyle, and dietary factors. Participants who regularly consumed mushrooms and algae had a 14% lower risk of death, compared to participants who rarely consumed mushrooms and algae. Study limitations include the use of a non-quantitative FFQ without detailed information on the exact intake amount and possibility of measurement error, and the lack of data regarding what type of mushrooms were consumed.

Source: Shen, Jie, Mengjie He, Rongxia Lv, Liyan Huang, Jiaxi Yang, You Wu, Yuxuan Gu et al. “Association of Mushrooms and Algae Consumption with Mortality among Chinese Older Adults: A Prospective Cohort Study.” Nutrients 14, no. 19 (2022): 3891.

© 2022 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https://creativecommons.org/license s/by/4.0/).

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Posted November 14, 2022.

Taylor Woosley studied biology at Purdue University before becoming a 2016 graduate of Columbia College Chicago with a major in Writing. She currently resides in Glen Ellyn, IL.

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