Experts share why mushrooms dey good for your health

For many pipo mushrooms (Agaricus Bisporus) no entirely dey unknown but no be as diet dem know am for. Dem typically dey see dem as dose colourful, umbrella like, fruiting body plants wey dey grow on damp surfaces or on dead trees.

However, some mushrooms offer nutritional, medicinal and even commercial value across di world. While mushroom market na money making industry for some parts of di world, not much of dis mushrooms don dey explored for dis part of di world according to experts.

Fruits or Vegetable - wetin mushrooms be?

Adeola Adeleye, wey be dietician say “mushrooms no be fruits, dem no be vegetables na fungi dem actually be. Sometimes dem dey grow for places wey dem no dey wanted”

Although mushrooms get a lot of benefits, Adeola warn say “we also gatz dey careful becos no be all mushroom you fit eat. Some dey wey pesin no fit eat so na why e no dey good to just pick up mushroom from di floor wherever you see am”.

Mushrooms get different types of varieties, but dem generally dey categorised into four: saprotrophic, mycorrhizal, parasitic, and endophytic.

While some dey grow naturally, farmers dey organically dey grow oda types of mushrooms.

Some of di ones wey pipo dey eat include: Button, Oyster and Reishi.

For Jos, Plateau state capital inside Nigeria north-central region, Amos Bummy wey be Agric Economist dey grow dis mushrooms either as di one e family go chop and also di one e go sell. Im also teach pipo to take advantage of di nutritional and commercial value mushroom dey offer.

According to Amos, you fit grow mushrooms by using three materials, di Spawn (seed), rice bran and sawdust.

“Di Spawn na lab work of which most scientist dey do, but once e don dey produced, di remaining material to cultivate mushroom just dey witin your environment”

“Di rice bran dis days no dey cost plenti money, one complete sag of maybe 70 or 80 kg dey even less than 2,000 (Naira)”

Thirdly, “for sawdust, you go need go wia timber shed dey, for some places we go just go pack am, while for some odas we go pay little cash to get am.”

Dis materials go come dey mixed togeda to form substrates and we go keep am for nursery-like environment usually damp and moist dark spaces as mushrooms like to grow away from sunlight.

Which nutritional value mushrooms dey offer?

According to experts mushroom consumption dey lower blood pressure, e dey help boost di immune system, e dey strengthen bones, dey help weight loss among other medicinal benefits.

Dietician, Adeola Adeleye say “mushrooms na very good source of anti-oxidants. Anti-oxidants na anytin wey dey prevent oxidative stress. So oxidative stress na wetin dey cause a lot of health conditions like cancer, sometimes diabetes, sometimes hypertension. So Anti-oxidants na tins wey dey counter oxidative stress”

“Mushrooms also be good source of B vitamins. So B vitamins na di major vitamins wey dey help tins like conversion of food into energy for body, red blood cells formation, e dey also help you to get energy from your food,” Adeola tok.

“Mushrooms also get a little fibre. Fibre dey part of carbohydrate wey dey very important for prevention of diseases, hypertension and especially high cholesterol. If you get high cholesterol, mushrooms particularly dey good for you, becos dem no only contain fibre, dem also contain a type of fibre wey dey known as beta-glucans. You fit find dose types of fibre on apples and pear (Avocado). So beta-glucans dey act like cholesterol mop up.”

“Mushroom contain immune boosting compounds. No be like say e go totally boost your immune system but e fit help your immune system to get to function properly”

Adeola also explain say becos mushrooms dey low on calorie. If pesin dey try to lose weight, dem fit replace some of their high calorie meal wit mushroom.

A billion dollars market

Due to di rising demand for vegetarian diets, di demand for Mushrooms don dey on di increase globally.

Data from di International Market Analysis Research and Consulting Group show say global mushroom market size reach US$ 67.6 Billion in 2023 from 50.3 billion in 2021.

For dia report: “Mushroom Market: Global Industry Trends, Share, Size, Growth, Opportunity and Forecast 2024-2032,” IMARC Group expect say di market go reach $116.8 Billion by 2032.

Nigeria dey produce 300 tonnes of mushrooms evri year out of a demand of 1,200 tonnes according to di National Farmers Information Service.

Experts say di lack of awareness of di potentials of mushroom don prevent many farmers from investing in cultivating Mushroom.

Joseph Bamike, na former lecturer of Mushroom Department for di University of Jos and e don dey advocate for di cultivation of mushrooms for Nigeria.

E regret say although Jos get di perfect weather condition for di cultivation of mushrooms, di facilities wey no dey and long process to export am remain as di bottle necks for di industry for Nigeria.

“Trying to get external market but den di protocols to first gada one container and to get farmers put their heads togeda to produce dat one container, dry dem and den to meet international standard na wia we dey fall hand”.

“E get a lot of foreign exchange potentials becos e dey rich in protein and pipo take dem, vegetarians dey take am all over di world and wetin we get here for Africa na di oyster mushroom and oyster mushroom dey peculiar to us and pipo dey interested,” Bamike tok.