Follow the Threads: Ergothioneine May Provide a Key Link Between Regenerative Agriculture and Human Health

[Linda Poole]

Soil health leads to human health, yes? But how exactly?

Researchers now believe that [those] fungal threads [mycelium] play a key role in establishing healthy soils, which then go on to produce crops that contain higher levels of a compound shown to promote health.

Researchers have just begun to show recently that soils managed according to the principles of regenerative agriculture—minimal tillage, crop rotation, and the use of cover crops—yield more nutritious harvests. In one case, for instance, Montgomery and Biklé studied nine pairs of regenerative and conventional farms and found that crops grown on the regenerative operations contained higher levels of certain vitamins, minerals, and phytochemicals.

That connection between healthy soil and healthy food is important, but it’s not the complete equation, admits Andrew Smith, Rodale’s chief operating officer and chief scientist. “We’ve done a good job of linking soil health to plant health, but never have really done a good job of linking soil health to human health.”

Enter ergothioneine.

Read the full article in today's edition of the Honest Columnist.

 

[HernanC]

That's right @Linda Poole. Ergothioneine, a longevity vitamin, was recently found to be more present in oats grown in no-till soils than intensive tillage, even minimal tillage. Since mushrooms are the leading dietary source of ergothioneine, the hypothesis is that ergothioneine travels through mycelium in the soil. Therefore, when soil is disturbed, the mycelium breaks and less ergothioneine is able to make it into the plant tissue, and the less that makes it into our bodies when we eat those plants. If you think this is interesting, check out the blog post on the soilforwater.org/category/blog.