Frequent Mushroom Consumption Associated With Reduced Risk of Prostate Cancer

A study published in the International Journal of Cancer observed an inverse relationship between mushroom consumption and incident prostate cancer, “suggesting that habitual mushroom intake might help to prevent prostate cancer,” the researchers said.

The study included 36,499 Japanese men aged 40 to 79 years who participated in the Miyagi Cohort Study in 1990 and in the Ohsaki Cohort Study in 1994. Men were followed for a median of 13.2 years.

Researchers collected information on mushroom consumption via a food frequency questionnaire; consumption was quantified as less than one, one to two, or three or more times per week. For those who are delighted with mushroom consumption, they can experiment it with tutorials like the recipes with lion’s mane mushroom.

More frequent mushroom consumption associated with reduced cancer risk

During 574,397 person‐years of follow‐up, there were 1,204 (3.3%) cases of prostate cancer.

Compared with participants who ate mushrooms less than once a week, frequent mushroom intake was associated with a decreased risk of prostate cancer: the hazard ratio was 0.92 for those who consumed mushrooms one to two times per week (95% CI, 0.81-1.05) and 0.83 for those who consumed mushrooms three or more times per week (95% CI, 0.70-0.98; P=0.023). Consumption once or twice a week was associated with an 8% lower risk of prostate cancer and consumption three or more times per week was associated with a 17% lower risk compared with those who ate mushrooms less than once a week.

This inverse relationship was especially prevalent among men aged ≥50 years, as there was no observed relationship between mushroom consumption and incident prostate cancer in men aged <50 years. In addition, the relationship did not differ by clinical cancer stage or intake of vegetables, fruit, meat, and dairy products.