Few words about eggs ...

Author of photos and post: @ lady-milady (Ligia)

1. Introduction.

I used to eat eggs because my mother said they were healthy.
Then someone said that you can not eat too many eggs, because of the high level of cholesterol contained in them. The next stage of cognition: there are healthy and unhealthy cholesterol fractions. The last (so far) level of awareness and knowledge that caused a change in my thinking about eggs ... (read on).

2. What was first - an egg or a hen?

Does it matter? Maybe as a humorous part.
According to the science of evolution, there were fish, then reptiles, then birds and mammals.
The reptiles would bear the eggs (so the egg was in front of the hen).
And a hen egg?
If what we call today a hen evolved from something that was before the hen, then ...
The egg from which this new hen hatched was before that hen.
Again the egg was first.

3. Hen - unequal to other hen and an egg - to another egg ...

The hens are kept in different environments (I do not mean the environment of Mars - there is no hens there - for now) and the Earth is not Gaia, which would support every form of life, as if we could have dreamed it.
Pollution is with us at least from the development of the industrial era and concern air, water, soil, food. How healthy can chickens and eggs in today's world be?

The hens are kept in (norms and classes for Poland - check them for your country, please):

I. small cages - hence we have eggs from cage breeding class: 3,
II. on the bedding (cage with bedding) - class: 2,
III. in chicken coops with free catwalk - class: 1
IV. and ecologically - class: zero.
V. in small farms, where the hosts are ecologically aware farmer - "Gaja" class ;) - not available in stores.


Depending on the environment in which the laying hens are born, they must receive (optionally) antibiotics and hormones. What he gets gets, he gives in eggs.


Do you think it's best to have chickens in the wild in the countryside, far away from big cities and traffic. In my opinion, yes. Such hens can go where they want and eat whatever they want (including worms, plants and smallpebbles). The host feeds them with unmodified natural seeds, some organic remains "from the table" and possibly organic food.

4. Healthy / unhealthy?

Eggs contain seven amino acids necessary for a person to live.
The most important of them, the one that regulates cholesterol in the body, is LYSINE, which is found in yolk. Lysine helps in removing bad cholesterol fractions from the body.

5. What eggs to buy and what next ...?

General rules: eggs can not be cracked, dirty. We do not buy eggs without shells (previously separated whites or yolks).


The lower the class from 0-3 (norms and classes for Poland - check them for your country, please), the eggs should be theoretically healthier.
Eggs from rural farming, purchased on site and from a trusted farmer should be the healthiest in theory. Well, if we know the living conditions and food of chickens.


To avoid spreading of salmonella and lower possibly of it occurring on eggs and packs, it is suggested to store eggs in purchased cartons, put them in a new paper bag and store in a refrigerator. The place in the refrigerator should be separated only for eggs.


Before using eggs, we should scald (with caution) and wipe it with a paper towel after cooling. We wash our hands before and after this. Care should be taken that the water reflecting off the eggs does not go off to sideways.


We throw the shells into a container with organic debris. Shells and the right organic remains can be brought to the owner of the hens from whom we buy them. Calcium contained in the shell is valuable for chickens. Shells must be ground before serving chickens. The chicken can associate the appearance of the shell with the appearance of the egg and eat eggs in the future (such behavior in poultry is often observed).

6. How to prepare eggs?

The prerequisite for preserving lysine in the egg is its cooking in the uncheaped shell.
The continuity of egg shell structure during cooking allows you to maintain a constant temperature in the yolk. Lysine breaks down under the influence of too high temperature.
When the shell cracks, the temperature limit is exceeded and the lysine breaks down.
The healthiest eggs are those cooked softly, then the smallest part of lysine breaks down.

What about the fans of eggnog, mayonnaise, scrambled eggs and fried eggs?
My personal solution for scrambled eggs: the egg sticks so that the yolk will not break up, with the spatula stirring only the protein. After cleavage of the protein, the structure of the ball with the yolk breaks down and is mixed with the protein already truncated. Egg yolk should not be left too long under the influence of high temperature (this applies to eggs without salmonella).
For fried eggs: the egg breaks out so as not to damage the structure of the yolk ball. After cutting the protein, the egg only reverses for a moment (remember lysine). The protein and egg yolk should be sterile and free of salmonella, which (if present) is found on skunks. The condition is to preserve all the purity steps described above (the same applies to the product kogel-mogel and mayonnaise).
Salmonella is killed at 70 degrees Celsius (according to the knowledge available to me).

7. Some questions ...

• What do the chickens eat (and what they are served) on organic farms and what about cages and what is the quality of life of these cuddly animals in such different environments?
• What effect does hormones and antibiotics in eggs have on our health?
• Are organic eggs (organic, zero class) devoid of harmful things?
• Do I know a trusted farmer in a village who grows laying hens, using old-school methods?
• Do you eat eggs, or maybe it is better to become a vegan and not eat eggs at all?
  
  
  
  
  
  
  

8. Final observations and ending.

Finances and awareness of the topic are often the main factors determining which eggs we buy.
Will these eggs be healthy for us - this is determined by many more factors (in the description) as well as a broadly understood healthy lifestyle.
Ecological awareness and empathy for hens (especially those from cages) often convinces people to quit egg consumption.


What solutions will be the best for you, your relatives and the world - I leave these questions and answers to each of you separately ...


How do I look at the matter of eggs after many years and what has changed?
My knowledge, approach to the subject of ecology changed and my consumption habits changed. I eat eggs rarely and only when I buy them from a trusted seller in the countryside. I know this man personally, I know the living conditions and food of his hens. I keep the rules of cleanliness applying to eggs. I know the rules of preparing eggs before eating them. I never buy eggs from the store and even though the ones I buy are more expensive. I know that I invest in my health, in the ethical and ecological hogging of the local farmer, and at the same time I do not support caged breeding. Do I do the right thing?
I used to think that an egg is an egg, now I know more.
What can I say today? - I think: ... "I have never looked at it from this side ..."





What do you think about eggs?


I hope you liked the article. Thank you, at the same time wishing you all the best.


Comments, resteem, upvots: welcome.

Author of photos and post: @ lady-milady (Ligia)

My articles you may like:

1. My Budapest - Part One.
2. My Budapest Part Two.
3. About me.