Not only will swapping out meat for mushrooms in one meal a day help you  lose weight, reduce overall body fat and maintain weight loss over time, according to a new study, eating them can also be just as beneficial as supplementing with vitamin D supplements.

Researchers at Boston University School of Medicine found that mushroom powder rich in vitamin D raised blood plasma levels of vitamin D similar to the levels obtained from taking vitamin D supplements.

In a randomized study involving 30 healthy adults  who took capsules of vitamin D2, capsules of vitamin D3, or mushroom powder containing vitamin D2 once a day during the winter, when stores of the sunshine vitamin were low. After 12 weeks, researchers found no difference in the vitamin D levels among participants who took supplements versus those who ingested the mushroom powder.

The researchers observed that mushrooms exposed to just a few seconds of UV light contain significantly higher levels of vitamin D than regular mushrooms.

‘These results provide evidence that ingesting mushrooms which have been exposed to ultraviolet light and contain vitamin D2, are a good source of vitamin D that can improve the vitamin D status of healthy adults. ‘Furthermore we found ingesting mushrooms containing vitamin D2 was as effective in raising and maintaining a healthy adult’s vitamin D status as ingesting a supplement that contained either vitamin D2 or vitamin D3,’ said lead author Dr Michael Holick.

So go ahead and eat some mushrooms, and read the following articles to learn more about getting enough Vitamin D.

• Vitamin D Decoded + Vegan Supplement Options
• Meeting Vitamin D Needs on a Vegan Diet

Image Source: Noria Nomura/Flickr