Last month, MSN Health and Fitness put together a list of 10 ways to painlessly upgrade your diet so that you help yourself out health-wise while eating well. To me, their tastiest and easiest tip was to switch out your typical white button mushrooms in your cooking and replace them with shiitake and maitake mushrooms. Research is beginning to show that these Japanese 'shrooms are full of antioxidants and contain selenium, which, according to Dr. Donald Abrams, director of clinical programs at UCSF's Osher Center for Integrative Medicine, "lowers cholesterol and blood pressure, helps with anti-tumor activity, and possibly encourages better prostate health." Their more common cousins, including our button, crimini and portobello mushrooms, don't have the same benefits.
So next time you're looking to make a soup or stew, reach for the shiitake or maitake mushrooms at the grocery store and eat for your heart health.
A study done by the USDA has shown that increasing the amount of whole grains in your diet can have multiple health benefits, including 
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