EGG

Syn. Ovum , L. A body produced in the females of birds and certain other animals, containing an ′embryo’ of the same species, or body, from which a similar animal may ultimately be produced. The eggs of the common domestic fowl are nutritious and easily digestible; and when lightly cooked by boiling and eaten with a little salt, are admirably adapted as an aliment for the sick and delicate. When boiled hard or fried, they are rendered le digestible, and po e no advantage in this respect over butcher’s meat. A new-laid egg, beaten up in a cup of tea, coffee, or chocolate is an excellent ingredient in the breakfast of a person with a poor appetite, and is very supporting. A gla of wine, beer, or porter, similarly treated, along with a biscuit, has been recommended as a light and nutritious luncheon or supper, well suited to the debilitated and dyspeptic. Raw eggs may be advantageously substituted for cod-liver oil in all the cases in which this last is ordered, occurring in persons with delicate or irritable stomachs. The addition of fresh salad oil vastly increases their medicinal virtues. A fresh egg is said to contain about the same amount of nourishment as 1 1 ⁄ 2 oz. of fresh meat and 1 oz. of wheaten bread, but in a more digestible form. | Composition of the contents of the egg. | | Water | 74·02 | | Albumen | 14·08 | | Oil and fat | 10·25 | | Mineral matter | 1·65 | | ——— | | 100·00 | | Composition of the white of egg. (Thompson.) | | Nitrogenous matter | 20·40 | | Fatty matter | | Saline matter | 1·60 | | Water | 78·00 | | ——— | | 100·00 | | Composition of the yolk. (Thompson.) | | Nitrogenous matter | 16·00 | | Fatty matter | 30·70 | | Saline matter | 1·30 | | Water | 52·00 | | ——— | | 100·00 |