New Zealand has one of the highest melanoma rates in the world. Around 90,000 Kiwis are diagnosed with skin cancer every year, more than all other cancers combined. Most of us know the sun-safety drill by now. But researchers are increasingly interested in what happens at a cellular level when UV radiation hits skin, and a little-known compound called ergothioneine is drawing serious attention. The catch is that our bodies cannot make it.
Ergothioneine is a naturally occurring amino acid with potent antioxidant properties. Unlike vitamin C or glutathione, which the body can produce or recycle, ergothioneine has to come entirely from food. The human body has a dedicated transporter protein, OCTN1, whose specific job is to pull ergothioneine from the bloodstream and deliver it into tissue, infrastructure scientists don’t dedicate lightly.
In 2018, Dr Bruce Ames, the University of California biochemist behind the widely referenced Ames mutagenicity test, included ergothioneine on a list of compounds he classified as probable “longevity vitamins,” nutrients whose absence quietly accelerates cellular ageing rather than causing obvious deficiency disease.
When ergothioneine enters the bloodstream, it concentrates in the tissues facing the most oxidative stress: skin, eyes, liver, kidneys. This matters because oxidative stress is central to what UV radiation does to skin, generating reactive oxygen species that damage DNA and drive the inflammatory processes linked to photoageing and skin cancer. Research has confirmed ergothioneine accumulates in skin tissue and provides measurable protection against UV-induced oxidative damage.
New Zealand’s UV radiation is roughly 40 per cent higher than countries at equivalent latitudes in the Northern Hemisphere, driven by the sun’s proximity during Southern Hemisphere summer, lower ozone concentration, and cleaner air with fewer particles to filter UV before it reaches the ground. The result is an extreme UV environment, paired with a diet that doesn’t deliver the compound best suited to defend against it. The main dietary sources of ergothioneine are mushrooms, particularly porcini, shiitake and oyster varieties, along with black beans and some organ meats. New Zealand’s food culture isn’t built around these as staples.
Studies measuring ergothioneine levels in Western populations have found most people are running significantly low compared to populations with high mushroom consumption, such as in Japan and parts of the Mediterranean. Some researchers now believe chronic ergothioneine deficiency may be an underappreciated driver of accelerated cellular ageing in Western populations, with levels also declining naturally with age.
For anyone looking to supplement, sourcing and regulatory standing matter. Not all ergothioneine products on the market are equivalent, and imported supplements sold online do not necessarily meet New Zealand’s regulatory requirements under Medsafe, which sets stricter standards around formulation and permitted claims.
Orama, a New Zealand health and supplement brand, is one of the few local companies currently offering ergothioneine as a core part of its range, formulated and quality-checked to Medsafe standards rather than those of overseas markets.
“Ergothioneine has been a priority for us specifically because of the New Zealand context,” the brand says. “The UV exposure here is genuinely different to most of the world. It made sense to us that a product addressing oxidative stress in skin should be part of what we offer to Kiwis, not something they have to import and hope meets the same standard.”
The science is still accumulating and researchers are careful about overstating what’s known. But the foundational biology is solid, the safety profile is well established, and for a population living under New Zealand’s UV conditions while eating a diet that delivers almost none of this compound, the case for taking it seriously is hard to ignore.
Media Release 22 July 2026.