When we speak of the protein diet to build muscle, the most recommended food by the instructors or other common people is boiled egg which is easily available and also has a good biological value. While recommending the boiled egg it is seen that most of them ask us to have egg whites and avoid egg yolk due to fear of its cholesterol content.
Egg Contents of a Boiled Egg
There may be small, medium, or large-sized eggs. For instance, we will see the contents of a medium-sized boiled egg –
- Weight-50 g
- Energy-78 kcal
- Protein-6.29 g
- Carbohydrate-0.56 g
- Total fat- 5.3 g of which 1.6 g is saturated, 2.0 g is monounsaturated, 0.7g is polyunsaturated, and 186 mg is cholesterol.
Furthermore, the eggs contain all nine essential amino acids that make it a complete protein.
Along with this, an egg contains a variety of minerals (calcium, iron, magnesium, phosphorus, potassium, sodium, and Zinc) and most vitamins (thiamin, riboflavin, niacin, vitamin B6, folate, vitamin B12, vitamin A, vitamin E, vitamin D, and vitamin K) except for vitamin C.
Should We Consume or Avoid Egg Yolk?
Though both the egg white and egg yolk have protein as well as other nutrients, the egg white contains primarily protein, and the nutrients are found exclusively in the egg yolk. The egg also contains almost half of the protein content of the whole egg. Though it is true that egg yolk contains cholesterol, it is saturated fatty acids that have a greater effect on our blood cholesterol and thus the heart disease risk. Recent research has shown that dietary cholesterol has very little effect on blood cholesterol. In fact, egg consumption can improve HDL (good cholesterol).
However, people with diabetes should observe caution, as some research indicates that consuming 7 eggs in a week is related to an increased risk of heart disease in these people.
Conclusion
Now, for a healthy adult with no risk factors, the total cholesterol intake can be up to 300mgs, the total fat intake for a 2000cal diet is 67gms and for saturated fats, it’s around 13 to 16gm on average according to different studies, that is less than 10% of recommended saturated fat intake.
So if you compare the values of the recommended daily intake and the contents of the egg yolk, you can adjust the values as per your calorie requirement per day along with other foods and you can consume 1 to 2 whole eggs along with the egg yolk with a lot of benefits then just consuming the egg white alone.
References
- https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/boiled-egg-nutrition
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6126094/#:~:text=As%20for%20micronutrients%2C%20egg%20contains,K)%20except%20for%20vitamin%20C
- https://www.heart.org/en/healthy-living/healthy-eating/eat-smart/fats/saturated-fats
Author – Dattatray V Sangle
