You Ask, I Answer: Egg Yolk

I heard somewhere that you should keep the yolk when eating eggs as you don't absorb the protein without it.

I know the yolk has the highest concentration of protein but I always assumed that egg whites are also a source of protein, albeit less than a whole egg.

Can you clarify?

-- Lori (last name withheld)
Ottawa, Ontario

Although egg yolks contain some protein (approximately 42% of an egg's total protein content), egg whites contain more.

Additionally, whereas egg yolks are a mix of protein and fat, egg whites are almost entirely made up of protein.

You do not need to eat egg yolk in order to absorb the protein in egg whites.

That is not to say the egg yolk is useless. It's a wonderful source of folate, vitamin A, choline, and the antioxidants lutein and zeaxanthin.

Numbers Game: Answer

Researchers at England’s Institute of Food Research concluded that our bodies absorb 500 times more betacarotene from cooked carrots than raw carrots.

(NOTE: “Cooked” mainly refers to steaming, which retains more nutrients than boiling).

Although certain cooking processes -- mainly boiling and frying -- can deplete some nutrients, quicker methods which do not place food directly in contact with water, like steaming, increase many nutrients' absorbability.

Phytonutrients like lutein and lycopene, for instance, are more absorbable in cooked, rather than raw, vegetables.

It is believed this is due to cell walls -- which contain many of these compounds -- breaking down when exposed to high temperatures.

Don't get me wrong. Raw vegetables are still nutritious and should be part of a healthy diet.

However, the raw food's movement claim that cooked vegetables are "nutritionally inferior" is completely misguided.