Stalker’s eye was swiftly drawn to the headline in the Guardian last month: “ Eat mushrooms, cut down on meat and use the microwave: the best diet for you and the planet”. You could nearly hear the mushroom growers of the land give out a cheer.
“Prioritising food choices is one of the most powerful tools we have to help save the planet, says scientist Tim Spector”.
You might remember Professor Spector as the main man behind the Zoe App in the UK which helped track Covid symptoms and gave many people real time info that helped them stay ahead of the disease curve.
He writes that : “ The single most important dietary factor we found for better gut health was the number of different plants we eat weekly, with 30 a week being the optimal number. That might sound like a lot until you realise that this also includes mushrooms, spices, nuts, seeds, herbs and legumes.”
He enthuses about mushrooms and writes that we should all eat fungi regularly. “Mushrooms are an underrated source of a multitude of nutrients: mushrooms may reduce chronic disease, improve our vitamin D levels and are a great source of vegetable protein while having a neutral or even negative carbon footprint.”
Good news surely for the mushroom industry there. Food for Life by Tim Spector is published by Vintage (£20).
