Egg Whites Vs. Whole Eggs
Egg whites are four times more abundant in the egg than is yolk, yet it contains much less of the fat usually associated with eating eggs.
Comparatively, the egg white, or albumen, contains roughly 88% water, 10% protein and trace amounts of both fat and sugars, like glucose, which contribute to the brown discoloration often found in hard boiled eggs. The yolk, on the other hand, contains 48% water, 16% protein, 33% fat and 3% sugars. Together, they make up roughly 74.6% of the water in the whole egg, 12% protein, 11% fat and 1% sugars. Basically, the egg yolk supplies all of the fat that are in eggs � thus, the health and nutrition warning to eat egg whites instead of whole eggs.
The proteins in egg whites include ovalbumin, which helps add structure to baked products; ovotransferrin, which binds metal; and ovomucoid proteins which assists in stopping the synthesis of extra protein. Ovomucin occurs in trace quantities and contributes to the thickness of the egg white and to the stability of the egg white foam. Other proteins present include globulins, which are important for foaming. Lysozyme is an important globulin; it helps to prevent bacterial spoilage of the egg. These proteins are benefical to the egg for structure, survival and aesthetic reasons � while cooking, they help the egg whites to coagulate and foam, and smell good in the process. The yolk, however, contains some other, less pleasant proteins. Livetin maintains the water pressure in the yolk, phosvitin transports iron, and lipovitellins populate the yolk. LDL, or low-density lipoprotein, is present as 12% of the yolk�s protein content and is cholesterol�s good buddy. It is cholesterol�s chauffeur during its stay in your bloodstream, and thus bad to ingest.
The fats present include triglycerol, phospholipids and cholesterol. Triglycerol is present in the highest amounts; these are saturated storage fats packed full of glycerol and fatty acid relations. Phospholipids occur in a significant amount. 3% of the fats within the egg are cholesterols. When you eat one egg, this means that you are also ingesting 250 mg of cholesterol. Remember that a healthy blood cholesterol level is under 200 mg/dL � the cumulative effects of eating many eggs over your lifetime means high cholesterol, which leas to coronary heart disease, heart attacks and strokes, all very bad. Not only that. If you watch your weight, then you should be very wary of eating whole eggs, because of the massive amounts of fats. That�s that much more fat that you have to burn off when you go for your daily workout.