Nutrient composition of fresh chicken egg (per 100 g)*
energy (kcal) water (g) protein (g) fat (g) cholesterol (mg) carbohydrate (g) vitamin A (IU) riboflavin (mg) calcium (mg) phosphorus (mg)
*100 g is approximately equal to two large whole eggs.
Source: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Composition of Foods, Agriculture Handbook no. 8-1.
whole egg 149 75.33 12.49 10.02 425 1.22 635 0.508 49 178
yolk 358 48.81 16.76 30.87 1,281 1.78 1,945 0.639 137 488
white 50 87.81 10.52 0 โ 1.03 โ 0.452 6 13
The whole egg is a source of high-quality protein (i.e., proteins that contain all the amino acids needed in the human diet). In addition, it is an excellent source of all vitamins (except vitamin C) and contains many essential minerals, including phosphorus and zinc.
All the fats, or lipids, as well as the cholesterol are found in the yolk. Yolk lipids are high in unsaturated fatty acids, with the ratio of unsaturated to saturated fatty acids commonly being 2 to 1. By influencing the diet of the hen, some processors are able to market shell eggs with a higher ratio of unsaturated to saturated fatty acids. Particular emphasis is being given to increasing the highly unsaturated long-chain omega-3 fatty acids by adding fish oil to the hen feed. Omega-3 fatty acids have been shown to play a role both in normal growth and development and in the prevention of many diseases.