The Danger of Daily Egg Consumption

Chicken egg without eggshell.

My friend, let's call him Yuri, loves to eat egg in any form of dishes. But, mostly he loves to eat a boiling egg. Everyday, he used to eat at least three boiling eggs with rice for daily meals.

I once asked Yuri, Have you ever get bore of eating egg everyday? No, I prefer to eat egg rather than meat, Yuri answered.

I did not actually believe to what Yuri had said. But, when I came to his house with my family, in a conversation, his wife told a story about Yuri to my wife and I. A kind of weird story to believe in.

Yuri's wife said, When my neighbour had a feast, my husband was not like everyone else. All my neighbours were taking Goat Satay, and Goat Curry for their meals. But, Yuri only took two pieces of boiling eggs for himself.

My wife and I suddenly laughed with Yuri's habits of eating eggs. I then believed to what Yuri once ever told me.

The Nutritional Value

White, speckled, and brown chicken eggs.

Nutritional value contains in hard boiled chicken egg per 100 g:

• Water : 74.62 g
• Energy : 155 kcal
• Total fats : 10.61 g
• Carbohydrate : 1.12 g
• Total sugars : 1.12 g
• Total saturated fatty acids : 3.267 g
• Total monounsaturated fatty acids : 4.077 g
• Total polyunsaturated fatty acids : 1.414
• Total cholesterol : 373 mg
• Vitamin A : 149 µg
• Vitamin B1 (thiamin) : 0.066 mg
• Vitamin B2 (riboflavin) : 0.513 mg
• Vitamin B6 : 0.121 mg
• Vitamin B9 (folate) : 44 µg
• Vitamin B12 : 1.11 µg
• Vitamin D : 2.2 µg
• Vitamin E (α-tocopherol) : 1.03 mg
• Vitamin K (phylloquinone) : 0.3 µg
• Niacin : 0.064 mg
• Calcium (Ca) : 50 mg
• Iron (Fe) : 1.19 mg
• Magnesium (Mg) : 10 mg
• Phosphorus (P) : 172 mg
• Potassium (K) : 126 mg
• Sodium (Na) : 124 mg
• Zinc (Zn) : 1.05 mg

Source: USDA

The Scientific Studies

Egg is considered to be a complete food, due to rich in many nutrients, and economically accessible. The cholesterol value in egg has important properties for human. But, the reduction in egg consumption has been widely recommended to lower blood cholesterol levels and to prevent coronary heart disease (CHD).

A study in Harvard Medical School among 37,851 men aged 40 to 75 years, and 80,082 women aged 34 to 59 years, free of cardiovascular disease, diabetes, hypercholesterolemia, or cancer, had documented 866 incident cases of CHD and 258 incident cases of stroke in men after 8 years later. Also 939 incident cases of CHD, and 563 incident cases of stroke in women after 14 years later.

The study found no evidence about the link between egg consumption and risk of CHD, or stroke in either men, or women. Harvard scientists also suggest that consumption of up to 1 egg per day, is unlikely to have substantial overall impact on the risk of CHD or stroke among healthy men and women. (Hu FB, et al. 1999)

In the other hand, daily egg consumption is is likely to have an impact on the risk of diabetes mellitus. Still in Harvard Medical School, a study among 20,703 men, and 36,295 women, had found that high levels of daily egg consumption are associated with an increased risk of type 2 diabetes in men and women. (Djoussé L, et al. 2009)

However, a continuous study by Djoussé L, et al. published in 2010, had found that there was no association between egg consumption and increased risk of incident type 2 diabetes, in older adults with limited egg intake. (Djoussé L, et al. 2010)

Several studies have also suggested that higher egg consumption may increase the risk of cancer. In a multisite case control study in Uruguay, between 1996 and 2004, had found an association between higher intake of eggs and increased risk of several cancers. (Aune D, et al. 2009)

I assume that everything which are taken excessively might have negative side effects. In the case of Yuri's egg consumption, even though Yuri's favorite egg dish of boiling egg, in which is healthier than sunny side up (fried chicken egg), half cooked egg, or even raw egg, but, his daily three eggs consumption should be reduced.

So, what do you think about it? Do you love to have sunny side up for breakfast? Well, I don't. I really hate to eat half cooked egg, or even raw egg. Because in an half cooked egg, or raw egg might still consist Salmonella bacteria, that can cause severe food poisoning.

All images from Wikimedia.org

The Health Benefits From A Roadside Tree of Kersen

Muntingia calabura Linn. (Kersen)

I never thought before that this kersen, an Indonesian name for the tree of Muntingia calabura Linn., has so many health benefits. The kersen trees are fast growing fruit trees. Kersen tree could grow up to 3 m high within two years. Kersen are commonly planted in roadsides, or parking lots. Kersen leaves, barks, flowers and roots have been used as a folk remedy to treat fever, cold, liver disease, and use as an antiseptic agent in Southeast Asia.

A Tree With Hundreds of Names

Since I was a child, I knew kersen by the name of keres. The Dutch was used to call it as Japanse kers (Japanese cherry), and Indonesian people then called it as kersen, or keres. Although some Indonesian would call it as talok, baleci, or ceri jawa (Javanese cherry).

Kersen is widely cultivated, and thoroughly naturalized in many places around the world, which made kersen is thought by the local people to be native. The fact, kersen is native to southern Mexico, Central America, the Caribbean and tropical South America.

In its originate country of Mexico, where kersen is sold in the market, kersen is known by the name of capolin, palman, bersilana, jonote, or puan. Can you believe it? Five different names for just a tree.

Other common names around the world include:

• Jamaican cherry, Panama berry, Singapore cherry, Bajelly tree, Strawberry tree (common English names).
• Datiles, alatris, aratiles, manzanitas and sarisa (Philippines).
• Chitató, majagüito, chirriador, acuruco, tapabotija and nigua (Colombia).
• Majagua, majaguillo, mahaujo, guácimo hembra, cedrillo, niguo, and niguito (Venezuela).
• Bolina, iumanasa, yumanaza, guinda yunanasa, or mullacahuayo (Peru).
• Takop farang, or ta kob farang (Thailand), kakhop (Cambodia), cay trung ca (Vietnam),kerukup siam, or Japanese cherry (Malaysia),Chinese cherry (India), and jam fruit (Ceylon).
• Capulin blanco (Guatemala and Costarica), capulin de comer (El Salvador), pasito, or majagüillo (Panama), nigüito (Ecuador), calabura, or pau de seda (Brazil), capulina, or chapuli (Cuba), cedrillo majagua (Argentina),bois d' orme, or bois de soie marron (Haiti), memiso, or memizo (Dominican Republic), bois ramier, or bois de soie (Guadeloupe). (Morton, J. 1987)

The Health Benefits of Kersen

Anti-diabetic Effect

An undergraduate thesis from Indonesian student of Malang Muhammadiyah University, had demonstrated the anti-hyperglicemic and anti-diabetic properties of kersen. The study resulted the efficacy of kersen fruit juice in lowering blood glucose levels in rats. (Verdayanti TE, 2009)

Cardioprotective Effect

Kersen leaves are reported potentially to possess antihypertensive effect. The methanol leaf extract of kersen had been studied to demonstrate its antihypertensive effect in anesthetized spontaneously hypertensive rats. The study resulted that the activation of sGC (soluble Guanylyl Cyclase)/cGMP (cyclic Guanosine MonoPhosphate)/PKG (Protein Kinase G) signaling pathway may participate in kersen biphasic (two separate phases) cardiovascular effects. (Shih CD, 2009)

A study in Srimad Andavan Arts and Science College, Tiruchirappalli, Tamil Nadu, India, had confirmed the cardioprotective effects of kersen leaves extract against isoproterenol-induced myocardial infarction (heart attack) in rats. (Nivethetha M, 2009)

Anti-cancer Effect

Kersen leaves possess potential antiproliferative and antioxidant activities due to its high content of phenolic compounds. The aqueous, chloroform and methanol extracts of kersen leaves had been studied using Microculture Tetrazolium (MTT) assay in Universiti Putra Malaysia, Selangor, Malaysia.

The aqueous and methanol extracts of kersen leaves inhibited the proliferation of breast (MCF-7), cervix (HeLa), colon (HT-29), and leukemia (HL-60 and K-562) cancer cells lines. Meanwhile, the chloroform extract only inhibited the proliferation of breast (MCF-7), cervix (HeLa), and leukemia (HL-60 and K-562) cancer cells lines.

But, all extracts were failed to inhibit the breast (MDA-MB-231) cancer cells proliferation, and did not inhibit the proliferation of normal (3T3) cells, in which indicated its safety. (Zakaria ZA, et al. 2011)

So, how do you call kersen in your country? Have you ever try to eat kersen fruit? You should try it now. Because, when you are in Mexico, you will have to buy for this tropical climate fruits, which easily to find in every roadsides in my country.

Tomato Rich Diets Against Diabetes, CVD, and Cancer

Red Tomato

Tomato (Solanum lycopersicum Linn.) is considered as a vegetable, rather than its botanically as a form of fruit, due to it is mostly used as an ingredient for culinary purposes. Tomato, which in Bahasa Indonesia is known as tomat, has other binomial synonyms, such as, Lycopersicon lycopersicum (L.) H. Karst., and Lycopersicon esculentum Mill.

When I ate tomato as a dessert, first I sliced a tomato into four pieces, put them in a glass, added with few sugar, crushed and mixed the tomato with spoon, and enjoyed it. That's how I used to enjoy eating tomato, besides of having it as a fruit juice.

There are many health benefits of tomato, including the protection from tumors at various anatomy have been attributed to tomato. According to several scientific studies, tomato is believed to possess antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anti-metastatic, antimutagenic, anti-diabetic, anti-cancer, anticarcinogenic, cardioprotective, and anti-neurodegenerative effects.

Anti-diabetic Effects

Tomatoes are a rich source of lycopene, β-carotene, α-tomatine, tomatidine, potassium, vitamin C, flavonoids, folate and vitamin E. Among tomato carotenoids, lycopene is the most active antioxidant. Lycopene acts as an antidiabetic agent through lowering the free radical, effectively at the dose of 90 mg/kg body weight, in a study using streptozotocin induced hyperglycaemic rats. (Ali MM, et al. 2009)

In a quasi experimental study, 32 type 2 diabetic patients received 200 g raw tomato daily for eight weeks. The study concluded that daily consumption of 200 g raw tomato, may decrease in systolic and diastolic blood pressure, in which will be useful for reducing cardiovascular risk associated with type 2 diabetes mellitus. (Shidfar F, et al. 2011)

Cardioprotective Effects

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of human morbidity and mortality in developed countries. Increasing the consumption of fruits and vegetables is recommended for CVD prevention. But, until now, many scientific studies mostly failed to show the effect of consumption of tomato in decreasing the risk of CVD. However, the antioxidant as well as the anti-inflammatory effects of lycopene, could be the background for cardioprotective effects of tomato, or tomato products.

In a study among 39,876 middle aged and older women initially free of CVD and cancer. Dietary intake of lycopene was not strongly associated with the risk of CVD. However, the higher consumption levels of tomato based products, such as, tomato sauce and pizza, had potential reductions in CVD risk, and give cardiovascular benefits. (Sesso HD, et al. 2003)

Lycopene inhibits lymphocyte (a type of white blood cell that is important in the formation of antibodies) proliferation (the growth and reproduction of similar cells) through mechanisms dependent on early cell activation, providing one possible mechanism to explain the beneficial effects of tomato rich diets against CVD. (Mills LM, et al. 2012)

Anti-cancer Effects

Based on several observational studies, the benefit of tomato was strongest for prostate, lung, and stomach cancers. And were also suggested to treat pancreas, colon, rectum, esophagus, oral cavity, breast, and cervix cancers. However, multiple components derived from tomato may contribute to its anti-cancer properties, and higher consumption of tomato or any tomato based products is associated in lowering the risk of cancer.

The high α-tomatine from green tomato extracts strongly inhibited several human cancer cell lines, such as, breast, colon, gastric, and hepatoma. α-Tomatine was found to be highly effective in inhibiting the growth of all human cancer cell lines. (Friedman M, et al. 2009)

Recent study had found that tomatidine, an aglycone of glycoalkaloid tomatine in tomato, possessed anti-inflammatory properties and may serve as a chemosensitizer in multidrug-resistant tumor cells. Just like embelin in my previous post about vidanga, tomatidine significantly decreased the nuclear level of nuclear factor kappa B (NF-κB).

NF-κB is a transcription factor which regulates several genes associated with inflammation, proliferation, carcinogenesis, and apoptosis. The study also suggested that tomatidine may potentially use in anti-metastatic therapy, as a new therapeutic agent. (Yan KH, et al. 2013)

So, whatever the variety of tomatoes around the world, all them have huge benefits for us. And tomato based products may also contribute to our health. Stay healthy! Let us not waste our health to look for treasure (wealth) and then squandered our treasure to seek health!