If you are wondering whether eggs are acidic or alkaline, you have come to the right place. In this post, we are going to answer that question for you in-depth, and tell you the best way to shop for and prepare eggs on an alkaline diet.
What is the pH of Eggs?
The American Egg Board says, “While whole eggs are relatively pH neutral, egg white is one of the few food products that is naturally alkaline, with an initial pH value that can be as low as 7.6 at time of lay, but with increasing alkalinity as the egg ages, and can reach pH of 9.2.”
The site adds, “The pH of a fresh egg yolk is about 6.0 and increases to 6.4 to 6.9 during storage.”
So, that is great news! Eggs—the whites in particular—are a fantastic choice on an alkaline diet.
How Nutritious are Eggs?
Adding eggs to an alkaline diet menu is totally worth it. Check out how nutritious 1 egg is:
- 14% of your daily recommended protein.
- 6% of your daily recommended vitamin A.
- 5% of your daily recommended vitamin D.
- 16% of your daily recommended riboflavin.
- 5% of your daily recommended folate.
- 8% of your daily recommended vitamin B12.
- 6% of your daily recommended pantothenic acid.
- 10% of your daily phosphorus.
- 20% of your daily selenium.
There are also smaller amounts of a variety of other vitamins and minerals.
What About Free Range vs. Hens Raised on Chicken Feed?
Does the type of egg matter? Aside from older eggs being more alkaline, you might be wondering about whether it makes a difference if your eggs are from free range hens or not.
As best we can tell, it does not seem to be particularly significant. Here is a study that compared free-range and conventionally-farmed eggs in Nova Scotia.
The researchers reported, “In the egg industry, albumen pH is used as an indicator of egg quality and freshness (Silversides & Scott, 2001). It is believed that as eggs age, carbon dioxide is lost through the shell and the contents of the shell become more alkaline (Lordelo et al., 2017). Although no difference in albumen pH was observed in the egg samples in the present study, the eggs evaluated showed a higher albumen percent compared to the yolk.”
The researchers also “observed no difference in the percentage of shells among free-range eggs when compared to other labelled eggs.” In other words, they did not find a difference in shell thickness that would result in either type of egg becoming more alkaline with aging than the other.
Since cage-free vs. conventional is not relevant to alkalinity, we do suggest you choose cage-free eggs.
It is more humane for hens to be able to roam around outside of cages, so there is no reason not to purchase cage-free eggs whenever possible.
What is the Most Alkaline Way to Prepare Eggs?
Given all we have just discussed above, we can offer the following recommendations for preparing your eggs:
- Consider using eggs that have had some time to age. Obviously, you should not wait for them to get too old; they still need to be fresh. But if you wait longer to eat them before they go bad, they should be more alkaline.
- You can eat the eggs whole if you are okay with a neutral pH! The yolk is nutritious, so eating it can have health advantages. Plus, yolks are tasty.
- If you want the most alkaline experience possible, then discard the yolks and just eat the egg whites. But you will be foregoing some nutritional benefits.
- Cook your eggs in a healthy, alkaline oil. Avocadoes are among the most alkaline fruits, so avocado oil is a great option with a healthy fat profile. Plus, it has a light, pleasant flavor that will make your eggs extra delicious.
Beyond that, it is up to you how you want to eat your eggs. If you want to forego oil altogether, you can poach them or hard boil them. Otherwise, you can scramble them or fry them sunny-side up or over-easy.
Other Considerations
You can eat eggs on their own as part of an alkaline diet, or you can add them to your recipes. You can even cook healthy breakfast recipes like scrambled eggs mixed with leafy green vegetables, avocado and tomatoes.
What is important is just to make sure you are using other alkaline ingredients. That way, the overall recipe remains alkaline. Avoid mixing your eggs with anything acid-forming, like bacon or breakfast sausage.
Conclusion
Are eggs acidic or alkaline? You now have a detailed answer to your question. Whole eggs have a neutral pH, while egg whites have an alkaline pH. If you cook them in avocado oil or boil them, they can be a delicious addition to your alkaline diet. In fact, they may become one of your staples.
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