Sound familiar? You’ve probably had these warnings issued to you countless times from health-conscious family and friends – and yes, your doctor too.

On World Egg Day today, FMT Lifestyle spoke with Dr Roseline Yap of the Nutrition Society of Malaysia about the humble, and often reviled, egg.

Celebrated for the first time in 1996 in Vienna, World Egg Day aims to dispel the myths surrounding eggs and to create awareness on how affordable, versatile, abundant, and nutritious eggs are.

Tasty and nutritious

For starters, Yap explained that eggs contain all nine essential amino acids, making it a complete protein along with beef, poultry, fish and more. Essentially, eggs are a must-have component of a well-rounded diet.

As for the yolks, they’re high in polyunsaturated fatty acids, the “good fats” one needs to stay healthy, said Yap.

Other than that, the nutritionist said eggs are a good source of fat-soluble vitamins like Vitamin A and E, as well as zinc and iron.

Sharing an anecdote of her own, Yap recalled that when she was exercising a lot during the pandemic, she was losing a lot of iron through her sweat. “That’s when I started eating eggs regularly myself to boost my iron levels.”

Yap also disagreed with the habit of discarding the yolk and consuming only the whites as this deprived one from all the benefits an egg has to offer. “It’s best to eat the whole thing,” she said.

High cholesterol?

Yap also slammed the myth that consuming eggs would result in high cholesterol.

“While egg yolks are a source of dietary cholesterol, there’s no evidence that it’ll raise your bad cholesterol level.

“In actuality, if someone has high cholesterol it’s usually due to a diet high in saturated fats like fried foods, fatty red meats or trans fatty acids. Therefore, it’s not fair to fully put the blame on eggs.”

That being said, it is safe to consume two eggs per day, according to the Malaysian food pyramid.

As for salted eggs, these contain higher amounts of sodium as compared to normal eggs, about one-third of the recommended intake per day, so it’s best to exercise caution with how many you eat.

Store (and cook) it well

When it comes to storing eggs, Yap said it largely depended on how soon the eggs were to be consumed.

“It doesn’t really matter if you put it in your kitchen or the refrigerator, though the latter would allow you to keep them longer, as long as you don’t let it exceed the expiration date.”

And is washing eggs before storing important?

“If you are scared of the dirt on the eggshell dropping into your food, then feel free to wash it before cracking, but there’s no inherent need to wash them before storing,” the nutritionist said.

However, one thing Yap advised against doing was consuming raw eggs due to the risk of contracting salmonella or suffering from food poisoning. Refraining from consuming raw eggs was particularly important for high-risk groups with lower immunity systems such as young children and the elderly.

Does the way eggs are cooked affect their calorie content, then?

Well, hard-boiled or poached eggs definitely contain less calories than fried or scrambled eggs simply because frying an egg requires the use of oil during the cooking process.

All in all, Yap said it is safe to consume eggs on a daily basis, as long as one adheres to the portion advised.

Not only is it more affordable compared to other animal-based protein, it is easy to cook with them too.

“At the end of the day, if you feel like you haven’t had enough protein intake for the day, the easiest thing to do is just add an egg to your diet!”

Head to Nutrition Society of Malaysia’s website for more information on its research and events.