In a new study, researchers found eating mushrooms is linked to a lower risk of the development of prostate cancer in men.
This finding suggests that regular mushroom intake might help prevent prostate cancer.
The research was conducted by a team from Tohoku University in Japan.
The team examined a total of 36,499 men, aged 40 to 79 years who participated in the Miyagi Cohort Study in 1990 and in the Ohsaki Cohort Study in 1994.
These men were followed for a median of 13.2 years.
The team found during follow-up, 3.3% of participants developed prostate cancer.
There was an inverse relationship between mushroom consumption and the development of prostate cancer.
Compared with mushroom consumption of less than once per week, consumption once or twice a week was linked to an 8% lower risk of prostate cancer and consumption three or more times per week was linked to a 17% lower risk.
The team says eating mushrooms regularly may help protect against prostate cancer.
But since information on mushroom species was not collected, it is difficult to know which specific mushroom(s) contributed to the findings.
Also, the mechanism of the beneficial effects of mushrooms on prostate cancer remains uncertain.
Future work needs to answer these questions.
The lead author of the study is Shu Zhang, Ph.D. from the Tohoku University School of Public Health.
The study is published in the International Journal of Cancer.
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