EGGS

Otago Daily Times, Issue 22397, 19 October 1934, Page 17

EGGS

THEIR VALUE IN THE DIET

(Contributed by the Home Science Extension Service.) History of foods tells us that eggs of various kinds are amongst the' earliest of foodstuffs for human consumption. The fact that under proper temperature for a certain period the eggs will produce a chick without any addition from without, suggests that the egg must contain valuable and reliable sources of enei’gy and of material for growth and development. As we eat them, eggs are relatively rich in all substances required for growth, except calcium and vitamin C. So far as the natural. function of the egg is con-cerned-—i.e., the production of the chick —the low calcium content of the edible portion is balanced by the abundance of calcium in the shell. The chick assimilates much ,of this during its development and as it pecks it way out of the shell. From experiments and their findings, we are told that the proteins of milk and eggs are the best proteins for growth and development. In “Chemistry of Food and Nutrition,” by Sherman, we read:— Eggs are more neary interchangeable with milk in nutritivq value than is any other food. They rank with milk as a source of vitamins, and they are richer than milk in iron, but not so rich in calcium. On account of this richness in iron and the fact that egg yolk is a good source of the ricketspreventing substance, eggs are among the first foods to be added to the milk diet of the young child, and if circumstances should arise in which no form of milk enters into the child’s diet, the egg will come nearer furnishing a satisfactory substitute than will any other food. Normally, however, eggs should only supplement the milk of children's dietaries and should not be allowed to displace the milk to any appreciable extent. Since, as noted above, the white of egg is better adapted to the nutrition of the chick than of the child, it is often best to give the child the yolk of the egg without the white. For much the same reasons that it is adapted to the needs of the growing organism, the egg is also a very valuable" food for adults who need to be “built up”; for under-nourished amende people, and especially for tuberculosis patients. In" addition to their well-known high nutritive value, eggs are popular for other reasons. They are easily cooked in a variety of ways, and by their admixture it becomes possible to make many modifications in the texture, flavour, and appearance of other food materials. Doubtless, it is largely because the egg facilitates so„many things in cookery which would otherwise be difficult or iniprncticnble, that the demand for eggs keeps the price almost always higher than their food value, for general use, would seem to warrant. We have seen, however, that the real food value of eggs is much greater than a mere statement of the protein and fat content and energy value would indicate. When all the factors of food value are taken into account, eggs are apt to be more economical than meat, though not so economical as milk.