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Eggs are such
a good source of quality protein that they are used as a basis of
comparison in rating the protein quality of other foods, with eggs given
an arbitrary value of a "perfect" 100.
Food
Protein Rating
Eggs (whole)
100
Fish
70
Lean Beef
69
Cow's Milk
60
Brown Rice
57
White Rice 56
Soybeans
47
Whole-grain
wheat
44
Peanuts
43
Dry Beans
34
White Potato
34
It is a trend
to eat only egg whites nowadays because of yolk contains some fat and
cholesterol and the white does not. However, the yolk actually contains
as much protein as the egg white, as well as the majority of the
vitamins and minerals. If you feel the need to limit the fat and
cholesterol in your diet, do so by eliminating other foods, not by
throwing away what is in many ways the best part of the egg.
Foods like
rice, potatoes and beans give you considerably less usable protein than
eggs or fish. The reason is they have some, but too few, of the
essential amino acids that are required for complete protein. You can
combine, two or more sources of this low quality (incomplete) protein to
obtain high quality, complete protein. That is, one food lacks certain
aminos that are supplied by the other food, so in combination they give
you what you need. Having incomplete protein is like trying to play a
baseball game with eighteen players, five of whom are pitchers and three
catchers. It doesn't matter that there are eighteen players because the
two teams are incomplete.
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