News
Eggs
01.01.2012
This tip on nutrition takes a look at eggs.
The longstanding assumption was that eggs increase the eater’s cholesterol levels. New studies have come up with other findings. We will explain these and will provide other insights into eggs in the following article.
The ancestors of the common chicken stemmed from India, China and several Malaysian islands. The jungle fowl living there – notably the bankiva fowl (also referred to as the “red jungle fowl”) - are regarded as being the parents of all of today’s common chickens. They belong to the order of galliformes. These fowl spread to the Near East, and, from there, to Northern Asia, Africa, and, finally, to Europe.
The ancient Egyptians regarded the chicken as a cult animal. This was because they viewed the chicken’s early-morning cries as being praise rendered to the sun god. The Romans used the chicken’s behavior as auguries of the future.
The keeping of chickens for the purposes of having a supply of meat started as late as the first century A.D. This practice’s breakthrough in Germany was thanks to Charlemagne, who decreed, in a law dated around 800 A.D., that farmers had to keep chickens.
The hen’s laying of eggs is not dependent upon their having been fertilized. This is thanks to the hen’s ovulating on a nearly daily basis. Via the fallopian tube, the egg cell, which is found on the yolk, travels from the ovary to the cloaca, which is the opening out of which digested food and urine are discharged from the body. In cases of fertilization, this path would lead to the egg’s melding with the semen cells into an embryo. During this movement through the fallopian tube, several layers of protein are draped around the yolk. Just before the egg emerges from the cloaca, it is encased in a calcium shell – the egg shell. In cases in which two egg cells are released on a single day, the hen does not lay two eggs, but, rather, a single egg with two yolks.
A hen’s life expectancy averages some eight years.
An egg contains:
Brown eggs are the same as white ones. The shell’s color is a product of genes, and is solely caused by the breed to which the chicken belongs. The feed can be used to influence the shell’s thickness, taste and yolk color. A lack of calcium in the feed causes, for instance, the hen to lay eggs which lack shells, or which have ones that are too thin. The inclusion of such pigment-containing additives as corn or carotinoide causes yolks to be yellow or orange. A brightly-colored yolk is not healthier than a pale one.
Foods that contain a large amount of protein are satiating. This fact caused scientists to investigate the role of the egg. Two studies report that eating eggs for breakfast fosters the feeling of being satiated. The result of this is a reduction in the number of calories consumed during the day. Another study had overweight people eat an egg for breakfast on at least five days a week. This formed part of a low-calorie diet. This promoted weight loss. A control group ate a bagel (a round roll with a hole in its middle) containing the same amount of energy. The latter group did not experience this weight loss. The blood lipids were the same for both groups. The cholesterol contained in eggs did not yield any negative effects.
Salmonella can get into the egg’s interior via the fallopian tubes or via a shell that has been contaminated by feces. The fact that these illness-causing bacteria are in an egg does not affect its appearance or taste. Once in the human body, salmonella can cause gastrointestinal illnesses featuring diarrhea and fever. Infants, small children and sick and old persons are especially subject to such infections. The risk of being affected by salmonella is especially high in summer. This is because bacteria breed especially well at temperatures around those of the human body. Fresh eggs stored in refrigerators do not provide the salmonella bacteria with good breeding grounds. The bacteria can not survive being heated to a temperature of at least 70°C for at least ten minutes.
the shaking test: gently shaking a fresh egg back and forth does not produce any noises.
the floating test: when you place a fresh egg in cold water, it stays on the bottom of the container. Non-fresh eggs have enlarged air chambers. This causes them to rise somewhat – or to even float on the water’s surface.
the cracking test upon cracking, the yolk should be arched and the egg white should be separated into viscous and easily flowing layers. Aging flattens the yolk and causes it to mix with the egg white, expert cracking notwithstanding.
storage life of eggs
Those interested in learning more about eggs should visit this Website http://www.ama-marketing.at/eier.
Questions? Wishes? Suggestions? Tips? Then send them along to the Kornspitz® team by writing an E-mail to info@kornspitz.com.
Mag. Gerda Reimann-Dorninger
Nutritional scientist
The longstanding assumption was that eggs increase the eater’s cholesterol levels. New studies have come up with other findings. We will explain these and will provide other insights into eggs in the following article.
The history of chicken
The ancestors of the common chicken stemmed from India, China and several Malaysian islands. The jungle fowl living there – notably the bankiva fowl (also referred to as the “red jungle fowl”) - are regarded as being the parents of all of today’s common chickens. They belong to the order of galliformes. These fowl spread to the Near East, and, from there, to Northern Asia, Africa, and, finally, to Europe.
The ancient Egyptians regarded the chicken as a cult animal. This was because they viewed the chicken’s early-morning cries as being praise rendered to the sun god. The Romans used the chicken’s behavior as auguries of the future.
The keeping of chickens for the purposes of having a supply of meat started as late as the first century A.D. This practice’s breakthrough in Germany was thanks to Charlemagne, who decreed, in a law dated around 800 A.D., that farmers had to keep chickens.
How an egg develops
The hen’s laying of eggs is not dependent upon their having been fertilized. This is thanks to the hen’s ovulating on a nearly daily basis. Via the fallopian tube, the egg cell, which is found on the yolk, travels from the ovary to the cloaca, which is the opening out of which digested food and urine are discharged from the body. In cases of fertilization, this path would lead to the egg’s melding with the semen cells into an embryo. During this movement through the fallopian tube, several layers of protein are draped around the yolk. Just before the egg emerges from the cloaca, it is encased in a calcium shell – the egg shell. In cases in which two egg cells are released on a single day, the hen does not lay two eggs, but, rather, a single egg with two yolks.
A hen’s life expectancy averages some eight years.
Valuable nutrients
An egg contains:
- high-value protein. The biological valence amounts to 100%. This means that 100 g of chicken protein can yield 100 g of human protein. The protein from an average-sized egg covers some 15% of the daily need of an adult.
- the liposoluble A, D and E vitamins. Vitamin A is the most important one contained in eggs. This vitamin ensures eyes of staying elastic. Vitamin A enhances irises’ ability to adjust well to brightness and to darkness. This improves our night vision. One egg supplies 40 times as much Vitamin D as milk does.
- the liposoluble B1, B2, B12 and folic acid vitamins. Eating a single egg provides you with some 26% of the recommended daily amount of folic acid.
- calcium, phosphorous, magnesium, iron, zinc, iodine, fluorine and selenium.
- cholesterol. The current state of scientific knowledge states that your cholesterol level stays relatively stable when eggs are consumed, provided that this forms part of a balanced diet. This is because the ingesting of the cholesterol contained in eggs suppresses the body’s own production of cholesterol. It is, additionally, presumed that the lecithin contained in chicken eggs further hinders the intake of cholesterol, which occurs via the intestines.
Brown eggs are the same as white ones. The shell’s color is a product of genes, and is solely caused by the breed to which the chicken belongs. The feed can be used to influence the shell’s thickness, taste and yolk color. A lack of calcium in the feed causes, for instance, the hen to lay eggs which lack shells, or which have ones that are too thin. The inclusion of such pigment-containing additives as corn or carotinoide causes yolks to be yellow or orange. A brightly-colored yolk is not healthier than a pale one.
Eggs and weight loss
Foods that contain a large amount of protein are satiating. This fact caused scientists to investigate the role of the egg. Two studies report that eating eggs for breakfast fosters the feeling of being satiated. The result of this is a reduction in the number of calories consumed during the day. Another study had overweight people eat an egg for breakfast on at least five days a week. This formed part of a low-calorie diet. This promoted weight loss. A control group ate a bagel (a round roll with a hole in its middle) containing the same amount of energy. The latter group did not experience this weight loss. The blood lipids were the same for both groups. The cholesterol contained in eggs did not yield any negative effects.
Salmonella infections
Salmonella can get into the egg’s interior via the fallopian tubes or via a shell that has been contaminated by feces. The fact that these illness-causing bacteria are in an egg does not affect its appearance or taste. Once in the human body, salmonella can cause gastrointestinal illnesses featuring diarrhea and fever. Infants, small children and sick and old persons are especially subject to such infections. The risk of being affected by salmonella is especially high in summer. This is because bacteria breed especially well at temperatures around those of the human body. Fresh eggs stored in refrigerators do not provide the salmonella bacteria with good breeding grounds. The bacteria can not survive being heated to a temperature of at least 70°C for at least ten minutes.
Useful tips
- buy eggs that are as fresh as possible and store them in a way retaining this freshness.
- always have a separate place for storing eggs in your refrigerator.
- use only fresh eggs in dishes containing eggs (mayonnaise, zabaione or tiramisu). These dishes are to be consumed within 24 hours.
- eggs whose minimum conservation date has expired are to be used solely in dishes that will be thoroughly heated.
- eggs whose shells have been damaged are to be immediately consumed via their forming part of dishes that will be thoroughly heated.
- raw eggs are not to be washed, as this will destroy their protective layer (cuticula). This prevents the entry of bacteria via the shell’s pores.
- in cases in which strong soiling causes the eggs to be, however, washed, a prompt processing of the eggs is recommended.
- when scrambling raw eggs, please avoid having cooked dishes close by. Upon completion of this task, all surfaces and devices are to be thoroughly cleaned.
How fresh are the eggs?
The answer to the question of whether or not an egg is fresh is to be found using the following tests:the shaking test: gently shaking a fresh egg back and forth does not produce any noises.
the floating test: when you place a fresh egg in cold water, it stays on the bottom of the container. Non-fresh eggs have enlarged air chambers. This causes them to rise somewhat – or to even float on the water’s surface.
the cracking test upon cracking, the yolk should be arched and the egg white should be separated into viscous and easily flowing layers. Aging flattens the yolk and causes it to mix with the egg white, expert cracking notwithstanding.
storage life of eggs
| uncooked eggs | in the refrigerator: according to the minimum date of conservation |
| cooke eggs | in the refrigerator: 7-14 days |
| dishes containing uncooked eggs | in the refrigerator: max. 24 hours |
| uncooked yolks and egg whites | in the refrigerator: three days |
Summary
Germany’s Society for Nutrition and Austria’s Nutrition Pyramid recommend consuming two to three eggs a week. The physiology of nutrition does not raise any objections to this consumption of eggs.Those interested in learning more about eggs should visit this Website http://www.ama-marketing.at/eier.
Questions? Wishes? Suggestions? Tips? Then send them along to the Kornspitz® team by writing an E-mail to info@kornspitz.com.
Mag. Gerda Reimann-Dorninger
Nutritional scientist
