Eggs are a natural food rich in large amounts of vitamins, minerals, and high-biological-value protein. But did you know? Eating eggs the wrong way can turn this nutritious food into a poison! Here are the 6 most harmful ways to eat eggs.
1. Eating them raw
Some people believe that cooking food diminishes its nutritional value. That's why many people prefer to eat vegetables and seafood raw. Similarly, some think eating raw eggs provides more nutrition than cooked ones.
However, this is not the case. Eating raw eggs can introduce bacteria (such as E. coli) into your system, causing gastrointestinal discomfort, diarrhea, and in severe cases, even death. Furthermore, the egg white contains avidin, a substance that needs to be destroyed by high heat. Otherwise, it will hinder the absorption of biotin from food, leading to symptoms like loss of appetite, general weakness, muscle pain, skin inflammation, and eyebrow loss.
2. Eating overnight eggs
It's actually fine to cook eggs and reheat them the next day. However, you should not eat semi-cooked eggs that have been left overnight! If eggs are not fully cooked, they can easily breed bacteria when stored improperly, causing issues like stomach upset and gas.
At the same time, some people believe the longer you boil an egg, the better. This is also wrong. Boiling an egg for too long causes the ferrous ions in the yolk to combine with the sulfide ions in the white, forming insoluble ferrous sulfide, which is difficult for the body to absorb. When fried eggs are overcooked, the edges can become charred. The high-molecular-weight proteins in the egg white are broken down into low-molecular-weight amino acids, which can form harmful chemical substances to human health at high temperatures.
3. Overconsumption
As we know, eggs are high in protein. Eating too many can increase metabolic waste and place a burden on the kidneys, potentially causing kidney damage. Therefore, it's generally advisable for the elderly to eat 1-2 eggs per day. Young and middle-aged people, or those engaged in mental or light physical work, can eat 2 eggs per day. Those engaged in heavy physical labor with higher nutritional needs can eat 2-3 eggs per day. Children and adolescents, who are growing and have fast metabolisms, should also eat 2-3 eggs per day.
Pregnant women, new mothers, breastfeeding mothers, individuals who are weak, and patients recovering from major surgery need more high-quality protein and can eat 3-4 eggs per day, but no more.
4. Adding sugar or soy milk
Many people like to cook eggs with sugar. In fact, when eggs and sugar are cooked together at high temperatures, a substance called glycosyllysine is formed, which destroys the beneficial amino acids in the egg. It's worth noting that glycosyllysine has a blood-clotting effect and can be harmful to the body after consumption. Therefore, you should add sugar to the cooked dish after it has cooled down.
Additionally, many people enjoy an egg with bread and a glass of soy milk for breakfast. However, the trypsin in soybeans combines with the ovomucoid in the egg white, leading to a loss of nutrients and reducing the nutritional value of both.
5. Eating eggs on an empty stomach
It's not a good idea to eat eggs on an empty stomach. Consuming large amounts of high-protein foods like milk, soy milk, eggs, and meat on an empty stomach forces the protein to be "converted" into energy for consumption, negating its nutritional nourishment effect.
At the same time, a large amount of protein accumulating in a short period can produce a large amount of harmful substances like urea and ammonia during the protein breakdown process, which is not good for your health.
6. Fried eggs and tea eggs
Many people like to eat fried eggs, especially those with golden, crispy edges. You should be cautious here, because the charred edges cause the high-molecular-weight proteins in the egg white to break down into low-molecular-weight amino acids. These amino acids can often form carcinogenic chemical substances at high temperatures. Additionally, tea eggs should be eaten in moderation. First, their nutrients are destroyed through repeated boiling. Second, the acidic substances in the tea can combine with the iron in the eggs, irritating the stomach and affecting digestive function.
It seems there's a lot to be mindful of when eating a simple egg, but these are all tips worth noting. As long as we pay a little attention when we eat them, we can well absorb the beneficial nutrients from eggs.