Important Egg Nutrition Facts that will Change Your Mind!

Eating a balanced diet is key to maintaining proper body function and health. However, achieving this can be quite a task as you may be used to a nutrient-deficient diet, and misinformation about certain foods can act as a barrier to change. The egg is a good example of such food and it has a bad reputation due to its high-fat content. However, what is not as well known is that the nutrients in eggs make them one of the best foods you can eat.

Egg nutrition information

An egg has bits of nearly every essential nutrient you need, and in great quantities too. To highlight this, here are a few egg nutrition values you should know.

• Calories: 78
• Protein: 6 g
• Fat: 5 g
• Carbohydrates: 0.6 g
• Potassium: 63 mg
• Sodium: 62 mg

As you’ll notice from these egg nutrition facts, this must-have food has almost no carbohydrate content, helping it maintain an incredible protein, carbohydrate, and fat ratio. All of these are macronutrients that the body needs for optimal function as well as when it comes to meeting weight goals, be it gain or loss. To help you better understand why you should be incorporating eggs into your meals, here are 7 health benefits that come with consuming eggs.

1. Preserves Eye Health and Helps Maintain Vision

Eggs have two compounds, lutein, and zeaxanthin, that play a crucial role in maintaining eye health. These compounds are the yellow pigments in food, which is the yolk in an egg, and these pigments are responsible for allowing the eyes to naturally filter out harmful blue-light emissions. Moreover, studies have also found that these compounds can also prevent cataracts and declining vision during old age.

2. Builds Bone and Muscle

Besides the ways in which the egg benefits vision, it also helps maintain the body physically. Calcium is among the nutrients needed to maintain bone health and while a large egg has around 28mg of calcium, it also has Vitamin D. This allows the body to better absorb the calcium in the blood, thus maintaining bone health, reducing inflammation, and improving neuromuscular function.

In addition to this, an egg is also known as a complete protein food as it has all the 9 necessary amino acids for muscle and tissue recovery. Thus, it serves as an incredible food for building muscle in a healthy and balanced manner.

Reduces Triglycerides in the Blood

While there are many types of eggs, there is a particular type that has the potential to reduce triglycerides in the blood. These are a type of fat in the blood, which are stored in fat cells for occasions when your body needs energy. Naturally, if there is no need for energy, high levels of triglycerides can lead to hardened arteries, increased risk of stroke, or acute inflammation of the pancreas.

This is where pastured eggs come into play as they contain a higher amount of omega-3 fatty acids, which are known to reduce triglycerides in the blood. In fact, a study found that consuming 5 such eggs every week for 3 weeks can reduce triglycerides by up to 18%.

Improves Brain Health

Eggs are loaded with a nutrient known as choline, which is vital to optimal brain function. It helps maintain healthy memory, muscle control, and mood, making it important for almost anyone. What’s more, it was found that choline through eggs can also help prevent brain dysfunction and reduce the risk of degenerative diseases like dementia. However, it is important to note that simply supplementing choline will do you no good as it found to work best in synergy with other nutrients present in foods like eggs. You get around 147mg of choline in one hardboiled egg.

Aids Weight Loss

Since the egg is rich in protein, and protein is known to be the most satiating macronutrient, it is filling as a food. This means that eating eggs with a meal is likely you leave you feeling fuller, thus reducing future calorie intake due to hunger. This can help with weight loss significantly as you’re feeding your body healthy calories and feeling fuller for longer.

Raises the ‘Good’ Cholesterol Level

In the human body, there are two types of cholesterol. They are LDL (low-density lipoprotein) and HDL (high-density lipoprotein), or bad and good cholesterol, respectively. While LDL is linked to heart disease, HDL can help reduce the same. Eating eggs helps raise the good cholesterol levels in your body, while not changing the amount of LDL cholesterol for the majority. In fact, as per a study, 2 eggs a day for 6 weeks can increase HDL levels by up to 10%.

Helps Healthy Aging

As you age, your appetite reduces and as a result, it is harder to get all the required nutrition for healthy living and aging. However, eggs contain 11 different minerals and vitamins, meaning they can help meet the body’s needs fairly easily. For instance, older people are less likely to venture into the sun as regularly as they should and as a result, it is possible to develop a vitamin D deficiency. Eggs can help supplement this and to add to that, they’re easy to prepare and eat.

Conclusion

Eating right is definitely a priority, and if your diet allows for it, the egg should be a part of your meals. If not just for the nutritional value of egg, you can also incorporate it easily into many recipes for taste. Apart from egg preparations such as omelets, fried eggs, boiled eggs, or poached eggs, you can add eggs in soups, fried rice, biryanis, sandwiches, curries, and more.

However, you may have valid questions pertaining to whether a boiled egg benefits you in the same way a fried egg does, or if a boiled egg nutrition chart reads the same as that of a poached or scrambled egg. The answer is that there are certain differences and if you have doubts about how your daily intake may affect existing conditions you may suffer from, your best bet is to consult a dietician.

This is easily done with the healthcare platform provided by Bajaj Finserv Health. It helps you find healthcare professionals in your vicinity, book appointments online, maintain digital records, and opt for telemedicine services. You can also track important vitals and keep tabs on your health in a simpler manner. To begin your journey towards a healthier life, take advantage of these features and ensure that egg forms a part of your diet!