9 SURPRISING FACTS ABOUT EGGS YOU MIGHT BE GETTING WRONG

Some experts say eggs are good for you, others say they're not. Moderation is best with any food, but there are a few eggy myths that deserve to be smashed.

---

Not too long ago, egg-white omelettes were a big thing. The yolks aren’t healthy, so toss them, we were told. It was a waste – and not true, either.

Eggs are healthy. One egg has 7 g of protein, iron, vitamins, minerals and carotenoids (pigments that give the yellow colour and are a good anti-oxidant). It also contains nutrients that fight disease.

Eating eggs with other food can help your body absorb more vitamins. A study found that you can get more vitamin E from a salad if you add an egg to it. Egg yolk is a top source of lutein, which helps with better sight and lowers the risk of eye disease.

So what bad news about eggs is not true?



Yolk has too much cholesterol
This is the myth that led to the white omelettes. One egg yolk contains around 185 mg of cholesterol, so some people worry it can increase the risk of heart disease.

Eggs don’t raise the bad cholesterol in the blood. They increase HDL, the “good” cholesterol, which lowers the risk of many diseases. Eggs have all the right amounts of essential amino acids, the building blocks of protein, so your body can make good use of them.

Brown eggs are more nutritious
The shade of an eggshell depends on the kind of hen that laid them. Some lay white eggs, some lay brown eggs, a few even lay blue or green eggs. It makes no difference to what’s inside.

There’s no way to tell if eggs are old
There is. Put it in water. Fresh eggs sink, off eggs float. This happens because the shell is porous and air passes through it into the egg over time.



The shell tells you nothing
Actually, a thicker shell is a sign of a good egg. It shows the hen’s diet had a lot of calcium in it. That means a healthier hen and a more nutritious egg. Smaller eggs usually have a thicker shell than big ones, so they’re easier to peel.

Store eggs in the fridge door tray
Egg cartons are best to keep fridge odours from getting into eggs. The temperature of the tray in the door keeps changing because you open the fridge often. That doesn’t help to keep eggs fresh. The best place for eggs is on the middle shelf.

Yolks all have the same colour
The color of a yolk depends on the hen's diet. The more carotenoids it has, the yellower the yolk. It doesn’t matter whether hens walk in fields or stay in cages.

Raw eggs have better protein
Drinking raw eggs in shakes or on their own is risky because of salmonella, a food poisoning bacteria that is killed instantly at 74°C. Eggs will always be safe when cooked properly. Dishes with uncooked eggs are riskier – you should cook and store them properly.

There is no evidence that cooking reduces protein. What’s more, raw egg whites aren’t absorbed as well as cooked ones and biotin (vitamin B7) absorption can become blocked.

Blood spots are a sign of fertilisation
A small dot of blood on the yolk isn't a sign the egg would have someday produced a chick. Usually, it’s a sign of a blood vessel rupturing while the egg was being formed in the hen. It’s safe to eat – just cook it properly.

No more than three eggs per week
The American Heart Association says a whole egg (white and yolk) per day can be part of a healthy diet. Eat it to replace other high-cholesterol foods such as dairy, meat and poultry. Eggs for breakfast help you stay full for longer.

Sources: https://www.realsimple.com/food-recipes/recipe-collections-favorites/popular-ingredients/egg-myths, https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/health-and-families/nutrition-lies-health-negative-eggs-vegetable-oils-meat-avocado-diet-food-drink-a7852391.html, https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20190916-are-eggs-good-for-you, https://www.sahealth.sa.gov.au/wps/wcm/connect/public+content/sa+health+internet/conditions/food+safety/keeping+your+food+safe/egg+safety/myths+and+facts+about+eggs, https://brightside.me/creativity-cooking/16-egg-myths-we-should-forget-about-in-the-21st-century-704160/