All foods have the capability of carrying microoganisms that can cause disease or illness....
A small percentage of eggs (about 1 and 20,000) can harbor the Salmonella enteritidis bacteri, inside their shells....
Blood spots in eggs are caused when blood vessels rupture on the surface of the yolk when the egg is being formend....
The color of the egg shell is determined by the breed of hen laying the egg....
Egg-laying hens are not given hormones, so you need not worry that hormones will find their way into any graded eggs you eat.....
The size or weight class of a carton of eggs refers to the minimum weight per dozen....
Eggs are federall graded as U.S. Grade AA, U.S. Grade A, or U.S. Grade B.....
All foods have the capability of carrying microorganisms that can cause disease or illness. Common symptoms of food-borne illness include nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, cramps, headache, and fever. While the risk of getting sick from eating eggs is relatively low, following are some tips for reducing the likelihood of contracting food-borne illness from eating eggs:
A small percentage of eggs (about 1 in 20,000) can harbor the Salmonella enteritidis bacterium inside their shells. By far, the greatest danger from Salmonella comes not from the inside, but from the outside of eggs. For this reason, the outside shells of all eggs distributed in the United States are washed and sanitized to minimize the chance of contamination from external sources. To further protect yourself, you should throw away any unclean, cracked, or leaking eggs. When handling eggs, be sure to wash your hands and keep them clean, since other foods you may be handling (such as raw meat) can also harbor harmful bacteria.
To further reduce the risk of infection from Salmonella from eggs, you can cook your eggs until the whites are no longer runny, which should kill any Salmonella microorganisms that are present. If present at all, Salmonella is much more likely to be present in the egg white, rather than the egg yolk (which has its own protective membrane to further protect it), so there is little reason to cook egg yolks until they are hard. As eggs age, however, yolk membranes become weaker and egg whites become thinner, increasing the risk that bacteria might find their way from the relatively nutrient-poor egg white to the nutrient-rich egg yolk--to reduce the risk of that happening, especially if you like your eggs cooked over-easy, sunny-side up, or soft-boiled, you should cook only with fresh eggs. Not properly refrigerating eggs or storing them at an uneven or insufficient temperature can shorten the shelf-life of eggs (Salmonella will not grow at temperatures under 40-degrees Fahrenheit), although there is little danger that even a spoiled egg will harbor Salmonella.
Children, the elderly, and individuals in ill-health are more vulnerable to developing complications from Salmonella infection than is the case with healthy adults. Extra precaution can be taken, however, to serve only well-cooked eggs to indiduals who might be at greater risk, such as small children, pregnant women, or individuals with suppressed immune systems.
Blood spots in eggs are caused when blood vessels rupture on the surface of the yolk when the egg is being formed. Electronic scanners eliminate most eggs with blood spots before they reach the market. Eggs with blood spots are no less edible than eggs without blood spots and do not pose any kind of safety risk. Blood spots can be removed with the tip of a fork, if desired.
The Chalaza is the ropy white material that is sometimes seen on one or both sides of the yolk. This does not pose a safety risk or indicate that the egg is spoiled. The Chalaza holds the yolk in place within the white and is a normal part of the egg.
The color of the egg shell is determined by the breed of hen laying the egg and is not indicative of the grade, nutritional value, or flavor of the egg.
Egg-laying hens are not given hormones, so you need not worry that hormones will find their way into any graded eggs you eat. Small amounts of antibiotics may be used to treat egg laying hens that become ill. They are rarely used, and as such are unlikely to contribute to antibiotic resistance. Genetic engineering is not used in the egg-laying industry, but only traditional selective breeding methods. If hens are fed genetically engineered feed, such as FatBird(TM), for instance, research has shown that their digestive processes guarantee that no genetically engineered materials find their way into their eggs.
The size or weight class of a carton of eggs refers to the minimum weight per dozen. Size and quality are not related. The following table shows the different egg weight classes:
Weight Class Minimum Weight
Jumbo 30 oz.
Extra Large 27 oz.
Large 24 oz.
Medium 21 oz.
Small 18 oz.
Peewee 15 oz.
Eggs are federally graded as U.S. Grade AA, U.S. Grade A, or U.S. Grade B. Eggs are graded based on the appearance and characteristics of the shell, yolk, and white. All three grades of eggs are equally nutritional and safe to eat. Grade AA eggs have a round and upstanding yolk and a firm white with minimal spread, for instance, while Grade A and Grade B have progressively less round and/or upstanding yolks and less firm whites with further spread. Grade B eggs may have stains on their shells, are generally not commercially available in markets, and are used primarily in the production of egg products or other prepared foods containing eggs. Canadian eggs have similar grades, but are graded as A, B, or C.
I'd peel away the flakes of shell carefully (the outside of the egg was very hot), finally exposing the shimmering white, then, with the spoon, break through to the molten yolk within. At last, putting down the spoon, I'd reach for the toast fingers and start dipping. As I savored the rich yolk and salty butter dripping from the toast, Mom let me dawdle and daydream, a rare luxury reserved for weekend mornings.(1)
1 The Good Egg: More Than 200 Fresh Approaches from Soup to Dessert by Marie Simmons, published by Houghton Mifflin Co., May 2000.
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