Egg

Hello,
I would like to ask about baking and eggs. This is new information to me and it surprised me quite a bit :-). Does this mean that baking within a cake is problematic even if it's under 150C? Do you replace eggs when baking? And if so, with what?
Thank you very much.

When cooking eggs, address two fundamental conditions:

1. Heat treatment should always occur to eliminate potential microbial contamination.
2. Egg yolk contains cholesterol, which, at higher temperatures or during prolonged heat treatment, can oxidize and become a health risk. In light of this fact, it is simply more beneficial for the yolk on the plate to be in a semi-liquid form, the so-called "soft-boiled" (meaning it undergoes heat treatment within a range that eliminates microbial activity while also preventing significant changes to the structure of cholesterol).

If you use yolk in baking, you cannot avoid cholesterol oxidation. In such cases, you face the dilemma of whether to use it or find an alternative from the plant kingdom. There are numerous options, and it always depends on the type of recipe—banana, agar, apple puree, grated potato, pudding...

Hello,
can consuming more than 10 eggs per week be harmful in any way, or is it just a mistake from the perspective of dietary variety?
Thank you

While there is a recommendation regarding how many eggs the average adult population should consume weekly, it cannot be considered optimal for every individual. For instance, athletes have a higher protein intake requirement, and a slightly higher proportion of eggs in their diet not only suits them without any issues but, in many cases, their metabolism even welcomes it (an interesting extreme example are some strength athletes in higher weight categories who eat 15 eggs and 30-50 egg whites every day, which is common especially among professional bodybuilders).

The limits set for the general population have their reasons, primarily stemming from the need to control cholesterol intake, as heating the yolk oxidizes it, potentially making it risky. Another reason is, of course, the effort to ensure sufficient variety in food selection.

Hello,

I am currently encountering a trend in my surroundings where people store eggs (home-produced) at room temperature. I never paid attention to this in other countries, but people are telling me that we are one of the few countries that store eggs in cold conditions. So, what is the situation?

This is simple - storing food in warm conditions shortens its shelf life. Therefore, modern food science strives to define the optimal conditions for each category of food to ensure the longest freshness. This also applies to eggs, where the ideal storage temperature is considered to be between 2 and 8°C, or in a place where the temperature does not fluctuate and does not exceed 18°C.

We still encounter traditions that persist from times when modern refrigeration technologies did not exist - there's nothing wrong with that, and with eggs, we should not perceive it as contradictory information. Generally, eggs do not like temperature fluctuations, and storing them at the aforementioned 18°C is essentially also fine.

I wonder why it is not recommended to eat eggs in combination with legumes, such as lentils. I also read that baking eggs is not healthy due to cholesterol oxidation, is that true?

The recommendation to avoid frying eggs is based on the fact that high temperatures lead to oxidation, which is assumed to have undesirable health effects. Eggs are a rich source of cholesterol (containing, on average, the full recommended daily intake), and consuming them in higher amounts could theoretically have a negative impact on blood lipid metabolism. However, this is also relative, as the individual's health status, including ensuring sufficient antioxidant capacity and the intake of substances that have the greatest influence on cholesterol metabolism (e.g., phospholipid complexes that are part of lecithin, etc.), plays a role in the entire process.

The combination of legumes with eggs is essentially unnecessary and burdensome at the same time, as both foods are an enormously rich source of proteins, making such a dish a very difficult-to-digest experience. Note that this is particularly characteristic of Czech cuisine, whereas nations where legumes are an integral part of their culture (India, Mexico...) process this group of foods in a completely different manner.

Good day, Mr. Jelínek,

I am interested in knowing what level of egg consumption is considered excessive. Is there any general recommendation for how many eggs per week are still considered within the norm?

Thank you in advance for your reply.

There is no consensus that can be supported by scientific evidence. However, it appears that the consumption of up to 3 whole eggs per day is completely safe for healthy individuals and has no negative impact on their health. Typically, the literature recommends 6 eggs per week for women and 9 eggs per week for men.

Hello,
what does oxidized cholesterol in eggs mean, and what are the effects of its consumption on our body? Does it also form when preparing other ingredients? Additionally, I would like to ask whether omelet or scrambled eggs are suitable ways of preparing eggs.
Thank you.

Oxidized cholesterol is formed in foods during more intensive heating processes (frying, grilling, baking). If consumed in this form over a long period of time (eggs, meat, offal, etc.), such cholesterol has the ability to promote pro-inflammatory reactions in the body and contribute to the formation of chronic inflammation. When preparing eggs, the best method is "soft-boiled."