Mushrooms could improve our health because of a protein called cytokines playing an important role in defending the body against viral infections and tumours, according to researchers at the Tufts University in Massachusetts.
Dietician Glenn Cardwell said: "Laboratory research found the intake of mushrooms may promote innate immunity the body's first line of defence against viruses. Further studies involving influenza infection are now under way to test these findings."
The continuous anxiety about the affects of influenza, predominantly swine flu; suggests that eating a balanced diet increases our immune systems are imperative. This latest research can be found in the Journal of Nutrition.
