What makes mushrooms boost immunity

The wisdom of using mushrooms for their health-boosting power goes back thousands of years. The first documentation of mushrooms as medicine was found in an Indian medical treatise from 3000 B.C. and for many years mushrooms have been an integral part of Chinese medicine.

Mushrooms have been associated with everything from providing immunity from the everyday cold and flu to stopping the growth of tumors. Mushrooms are also known to prevent breast and prostate cancer, reduce cholesterol, and help to manage diabetes.

What is it about mushrooms that pack such a powerful punch?

Mushrooms are a good source of riboflavin, niacin, selenium and vitamins A, C and D. Selenium is an antioxidant that works in concert with vitamin E to protect cells from free radicals.

In addition to the nutrients found in mushrooms there are also a variety of bioactive molecules, like polysaccharides, which are known to fight tumors.

According to a review – Mushrooms, Tumors, and Immunity – from the University of California Davis School of Medicine, several studies of lentinan, a polysaccharide found in mushrooms, found that treating mice and people with cancer with lentinan shrank or eliminated tumors. Lentinan has also been associated with improving immunity and helping the body fight illness and infection.

Mushrooms are not powerful enough to fight colds or cancer on their own, but when used to supplement a healthy diet and regular visits to the doctor, they do have the power to increase your immunity when your body needs a boost.

Mushrooms have the power to boost your immunity

When you feel a cold or the flu coming on, you might start popping extra Vitamin C tablets or make a steaming pot of chicken soup, but would you ever guess that eating mushrooms could have prevented that cold or flu from arriving in the first place?

Mushrooms are a traditional element of Chinese medicine and have been respected for hundreds of years for their immunity-boosting power. Modern science backs this up, as recent studies have shown that mushrooms boost immunity and even help fight the growth of tumors.

According to a story by the Reuters news service, mushrooms are “powerhouses for boosting the immune system.” One study found that even the humble white button mushroom protected mice from harm when they were exposed to a chemical that triggers colon inflammation.

Mushrooms can be taken as an herbal remedy, or just added to your everyday diet.

Which mushrooms boost immunity and where to buy them

Extracts of cordyceps, ganoderma (also called reishi), coriolus, maitake, shiitake, and others are popular for promoting immune function. Extracts can be a convenient way to get a daily dose of mushrooms.

People’s Herbs, located in Portland, OR, sells mushroom extracts. Your local Whole Foods store offers several immune-boosting mushroom extracts in pill form. Medicinal mushrooms can also be ordered online here. And your local grocery store likely carries mushrooms that are good to include in your diet, like the button mushroom, shitake mushrooms and oyster mushrooms.

What is it about mushrooms that make them so good for our immune systems? We’ll explore that in our next post.

How to avoid colds and the flu in 5 easy steps: Step 5

Step 5: For men: don't have sex | For women: take preventive measures during your period

This one is pretty straightforward. The key thing for men is to avoid sex because it causes a loss of one of the body's vital substances called Essence. For women, they lose essence when they menstruate and thus are more vulnerable to catching a cold during their period.
In Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), Essence is vital for health and energy. Losing Essence for men in this way when they are sick will definitely prolong a cold and exacerbate symptoms. Awareness will help you here. If you become aware of your cold recovery time both when you have sex and when you abstain you will definitely learn to abstain from sex if you want to get well quickly. For women, consider following some of these steps or other cold preventing habits you have during your period. This is especially useful during cold and flu season.

Extra Credit: Slow down

This one—like step 3—can be difficult to do if you mostly feel fine. You probably feel well enough to go out with friends or continue to workout or do whatever fun thing you had planned. You don't need to stay inbed all day sleeping - although that would certainly help. Just do a bit less of whatever you would be doing normally. Postpone social engagements, go to sleep earlier, skip a workout at the gym. Within one or two days you can go back to your normal schedule knowing that you saved yourself anywhere from two days to two weeks of feeling much worse and missing even more!

Recap

If you want to have fewer colds and flus and spend less time feelingbad when you do catch one then follow the steps outlined above. Below I've provided a graphical representation of the two years before and after I started following these steps myself. You can easily achieve the same results!

This is my own actual experience. I don't even follow all the steps all the time! In general, the steps are numbered in order of importance -although the last, resting—is always a good idea if you're not feeling well. As you get better at dodging and limiting colds, you'll get a feel for what works best for you. When you become aware of the power of these steps and your own determination to be well, you will be amazed at the ability you have tostop getting sick!

Here is a table summarizing the steps for you:

5 Steps to Stop Catching Colds

1. Learn to recognize and take action at the first sign thatyou're catching a cold.


2. Take the classic Chinese herbal formula Yin Qiao andlarge doses of vitamin C.


3. Temporarily stop eating and drinking these things:coffee, alcohol, sugar, dairy, wheat and raw foods.


4. Eat Soups and Congees


5. For men: don't have sex | For women: take preventive measures during your period
   

• Extra Credit: Slow down

I hope you find this information helpful. Drop me an e-mail and let me know how you make out following this advice. I can be reached at jayzambelli@gmail.com, or leave me a comment.

Good luck with your improved health!

How to avoid colds and the flu in 5 easy steps: Step 4

Step 4: Eat Soups and Congees

Aside from avoiding certain foods when you are just catching a cold, you can help your body by eating soup at mealtime. Eat brothy soups with vegetables and chicken. Chicken soup with rice is a good choice. So is miso soup with vegetables. The traditional food to eat in China when you've caught a cold is a rice soup called congee. Congee is a great comforting food that's easy to make.

Soup helps you in three ways. First, all the ingredients are well cooked and served hot—which aids your digestion. Second, when you cook soup, many nutrients that might otherwise get lost in the cooking process get captured by the broth. Third, if you're eating nutritious soups you're eating less of the foods that undermine your immune system.

How to Make Congee

For a quick version of congee simply cook rice in water and/or broth at a ratio of 5 (water/broth) to 1 (rice) at a low simmer as described below. Add things like cooked chicken or fish and chopped onion, ginger and garlic when ready to serve.

This delicious recipe is from Epicurious.com

Ingredients:
3 1/2 to 4-lb chicken, cut into serving pieces, including back and giblets (exclude liver)
10 cups water
3 tablespoons Chinese rice wine or medium-dry sherry
3 (1/4-inch-thick) slices fresh ginger
3 scallions, halved crosswise and smashed with flat side of a heavy knife
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup long-grain rice
Accompaniment: fine julliene of fresh ginger, thinly sliced scallions, and Asian sesame oil

Preparation: Bring chicken and water to a boil in a 5-quart heavy pot, skimming froth. Add wine, ginger, scallions, and salt and cook at a bare simmer, uncovered, 20 minutes, or until breast meat is just cooked through. Transfer 1 breast half with tongs to a bowl and continue to cook stock at a bare simmer, skimming froth as necessary, 2 hours and 40 minutes. Meanwhile, cool chicken breast long enough to remove skin and bones, returning skin and bones to stock.

Cool breast meat completely and tear into shreds. Chill shreds, covered, and bring to room temperature before serving.

Pour stock through a large sieve into a large bowl and discard solids. (you should have about 8 cups: if less, add water; if more, cook longer after adding rice.) Return stock to cleaned pot and add rice. Bring to a boil and stir. Reduce heat to low and simmer, covered until consistency of oatmeal, about 1 3/4 hours, stirring frequently during last 1/2 hour of cooking. (Congee will continue to thicken as it stands. thin with water if necessary.)

Season congee with salt. Serve topped with chicken and accompaniments.

How to avoid colds and the flu in 5 easy steps: Step 3

Step 3: Temporarily stop eating and drinking these things: coffee, alcohol, sugar, dairy, wheat and raw foods.

Once you realize that you are on the verge of a cold it is important to avoid coffee, alcohol, sugar, dairy, wheat and raw foods for a few days until you know your cold has passed.

This step might be a difficult one for some people to follow—why give these things up if you aren't feeling that bad yet? Remember, the goal here is to avoid getting sick. By following these steps you might get lucky like me and not get sick for 3 or 4 years! Isn't that worth giving up your favorite items from this list for two to three days three to five times a year?

Think of symptoms like a scratchy throat or runny nose as a call for help from your body. Considering all the things your body is doing without you consciously having to be in charge of or act on (breathing, pumping blood, digesting food, providing immunity, etc...)— is it too much to ask for you to help ward off this invading cold? Mostly what i'm suggesting you do in Step 3 is stop ingesting the things which actually thwart your immune system. You can do it! Be a team player! Stop aiding the bugs — start aiding your immune system!

Why avoid these foods?

• Coffee is dehydrating and can make a sore throat worse.
• Alcohol is also dehydrating, it can make a fever worse, and it hinders your immune function.
• Sugar decreases the ability of your immune cells to kill bacteria.
• Dairy is mucus forming, which can increase congestion in nasal passages, throat and chest.
• Wheat allergies are often undiagnosed and can cause low-grade hay-fever-like symptoms after eating. Try cutting what out when you're sick and see if it helps you. Also, white flour has a high glycemic index and so may suppress immune function in the way that sugar does.
• Raw foods are harder to digest than cooked foods. When you're getting sick, the easier it is to get your nutrition the better off you'll be.
  

How to avoid colds and the flu in 5 easy steps: Step 2

STEP 2: Start taking the classic Chinese herbal formula Yin Qiao and large doses of vitamin C

Yin Qiao is one of the classic formulas in traditional Chinese medicine used to help drive out a cold that is just getting started. It is formulated specifically for illness with flu-like symptoms such as a sore throat. However it is a good choice for the initial onset of the common cold as well.

Yin Qiao (sometimes spelled Yin Chao) can be found in health food stores such as Whole Foods and New Seasons. Yin Qiao is for acute conditions and should not be taken long term. Dose as directed on the package. Additionally, drink 2 to 4 packages per day of Emergen-C Lite (sugar free) or Emergen-C Immune Defense for a few days. Other Vitamin C supplements will work fine, too. The important thing is to have large doses of Vitamin C (2000mg - 4000mg per day).

Airborne, an over-the-counter supplement designed to boost immunity, is an effective product that acts similar to the combination above—probably because they share many of the same ingredients. I've had tremendous success with Yin Qiao and Emergen-C and they are the less expensive option. Airborne has the advantage of combining the herbs and vitamins in 1 package and is more widely available (Walmart even has a version of it).

Either way, buy these items, keep them on hand, and use them at the first sign of a cold!

How to avoid colds and the flu in 5 easy steps: Step 1

When I moved to the Pacific Northwest 11 years ago I was getting sick 4 to 6 times per year. I was catching the common cold and flu and would feel awful for 1 to 2 weeks at a time. Some colds would linger for more than a month.

An amazing thing happened to me when I started acupuncture school - the number of colds I caught and the length of time I was sick dropped dramatically! Today I get colds less than once a year—I've even gone stretches of 3 years without getting sick.

I have learned five important lessons —five steps that you can take to dramatically reduce how often and how badly you get colds and flus.

STEP 1: Learn to recognize and take action at the first sign that you're getting sick.

The first thing you need to do is recognize the early signs of a cold. For me, this is easy—whenever I'm starting to catch a cold my throat begins to feel a little scratchy and uncomfortable. Often my ears feel a little strange and my nose may get congested, too.

You need to pay attention to how your body feels when you're starting to get sick. The sooner you realize you are catching a cold and take preventive measures, the more likely you'll be to reduce your symptoms or better yet, avoid the cold all together.

Here is a list of common symptoms many people experience at the start of a cold:

Early Signs of the Common Cold or Flu

Scratchy sore throat
Runny nose / nasal congestion
Fever
Itchy or full feeling of the inner ear
Cough
Sleepiness
Irritability
Achiness
Loss of appetite
Congestion or sputum in the throat or chest

What many people do when they first experience these symptoms is... nothing! People either don't recognize them as the early warning signs that they are or they hope that the symptoms won't progress to a full blown cold. Denial is classic at this point - no one wants to have a cold or curtail their normal activities. What most people don't know is that at this early stage they can often prevent themselves from getting sick.

Once you suspect a cold is coming, take action! The following steps can often prevent colds—and limit their severity and duration.