Many of us might consume eggs every single day. This is also a very common food kept refrigerated in almost all households. Eggs are very easy to process and contain various nutritional substances which are beneficial for health. Eggs are a great source of useful protein with only few calories. Some say that eggs contain high level of cholesterol which can put your health in a risk. In fact, our body produces 95% of necessary cholesterol in the liver, while we get the rest of it from the diets we consume. Therefore, in moderation, dietary cholesterol should not be a bad thing for your entire health. With eggs, there are a lot of disputes about which one is healthier between egg yolks and egg whites.

Egg whites

As seen from its texture and color, egg whites is the more plain part of an egg. Despite this, egg whites can be processed into various delicious meals, especially cake and cookies. Hence, this part is highly consumed as the yolk. Egg white is formed as the yolk’s protector, so that it has stronger and elastic texture than the yolk itself. When nothing interferes an egg, this white part should provide protection and additional nutrition for the future embryo. When the egg is not fertilized, this white part becomes the beneficial part for those who are on strict diets or having medical issues involving cholesterol level. Egg white is advised for those with diabetes since it does not contain any level of cholesterol. Instead, egg white contains protein, sodium, calories, folate, selenium, magnesium, and potassium. All these substances are beneficial for our health. Being fat-free, egg whites are also consumed by people who are trying to maintain their weight.

Egg yolks

Despite its good taste, egg yolk has long been disputed as the bad part of an egg. Many people with certain medical condition or strict diets even avoid consuming this yellow part at all. One of many reasons why people choose to avoid egg yolks is its level of cholesterol. Cholesterol level in an egg yolk is said to be quite high and in similar level with red meat. In fact, egg yolks are indeed loaded with cholesterol, while egg whites aren’t. This is not because of a reason. Cholesterol is an important substance needed for embryo developing inside an egg. When there is no interferes to this embryo, it will turn into chicks. Similar to humans, these embryos need hormones, vitamins, and minerals for proper development, and egg yolk is providing all the nutrients needed, while the egg white provides protection so that the yolk itself is not interfered. However, if you are doubtful about whether or not you should consume egg yolks, you may refer to various studies which state that dietary cholesterol which come from foods we are taking is in fact beneficial for our digestion and health. This kind of cholesterol, in addition, raises the level of HDL instead of LDL—the bad cholesterol. The kind of cholesterol you might want to avoid is the one coming from sugar, especially fructose, which has a bigger chance of raising LDL level.

Healthiest way to eat eggs

It is often said that certain cooking methods might ruin eggs nutrition or even add extra fats and cholesterol. In fact, the best way to eat eggs is based on your preference. You can boil, scramble, fry, poach, and even make baked goods out of this delicious thing. Boiling and poaching the eggs will not promote additional saturated fats or calories. Processing eggs with or without its shell in a pan of boiled water for several minutes will maintain all the nutrition while also killing any possible bacteria. Frying the egg might add some saturated fat if you use a lot of amount of frying oil. Therefore, frying an egg in a non-stick pan with oil spray might be better. Many people like to eat the eggs raw. This can be considered fine if you purchase certificated organic eggs. However, processing the egg until the yolk is done is a good way in preventing salmonella infection which can lead to various unwanted diseases.