|
 > Home page
Diabetes Cure
Could Lie In Mushrooms
TheWest.com.au
NO ADSENSE ACCOUNT SELECTED FOR
GOOGLE ADSENSE
 An ancient mushroom once
heralded as an elixir of immortality by Chinese royalty is
being tested as a possible cure for modern day
diabetes.
Sydney researchers are working to see whether the extra
large medicinal fungi can reduce high blood pressure, glucose
and cholesterol.
When coupled with insulin resistance, these conditions bring
about metabolic syndrome, a precursor to type-two diabetes
which affects an increasing number of Australians.
Scientists at the University of Western Sydney believe the
mushroom, called ganoderma lucidum, can offer much-needed
clinical evidence of new treatments for the syndrome.
Also known as Reishi, the Asian herb has been treated as a
cure-all to fight a wide range of diseases for 2000 years, said
PhD researcher Nerida Klupp.
It was thought to be an elixir of immortality, enhancing
vitality and helping to delay ageing, Ms Klupp said.
NO ADSENSE ACCOUNT SELECTED FOR
GOOGLE ADSENSE "At its most rare, it was only
available to Chinese royalty due to its mystical properties,"
she said.
Cultivation has increased over the last 30 years, and
preliminary animal and human pilot studies seem to suggest it
can have a positive effect on blood sugar levels, cholesterol
levels and blood fats.
The mushroom - an inedible fungi typically the size of a
bread and butter plate - contains about 200 active chemical
compounds, but researchers believe a group called the
polysaccharides are the most effective.
Traditional users believe it is most potent when taken in
combination with another medicinal mushroom called cordyceps
sinensis.
The researchers will put this theory to the test when they
enlist 170 people with metabolic syndrome symptoms for a
four-month trial.
Participants will get either capsules of powdered Reishi
alone, a combination of the two mushrooms, or a placebo
capsule.
If successful, it could become the first single treatment
for the metabolic syndrome, Ms Klupp said.
AAP
More information on this site
|