Add eggs to salads to boost Vitamin E absorption

Adding whole eggs to a colourful salad boosts the amount of vitamin E the body absorbs from the vegetables, says a study. "We found vitamin E absorption was four- to seven-fold higher when three whole eggs were added to a salad," said Jung Eun Kim from Purdue University in West Lafayette, Indiana US.

"This study is novel because we measured the absorption of Vitamin E from real foods, rather than supplements, which contain mega-dose amounts of Vitamin E," Kim noted. Vitamin E, which is absorbed along with dietary fats, is often found in oils, seeds and nuts.

Eggs, a nutrient-rich food containing essential amino acids, unsaturated fatty acids and B vitamins, also contain a small amount of vitamin E. This study accounted for how much total vitamin E was absorbed when vitamin E containing foods were co-consumed with whole eggs.

This research supports a way to increase the absorption of vitamin E found in foods that contain low dietary fat. Also, this research highlights how one food can improve the nutrition value of another food when they are consumed together.

"Now consumers can easily improve their diets by adding eggs to a salad that boasts a variety of colourful vegetables," Wayne Campbell, Professor of Nutrition Science at Purdue University pointed out. The findings were published in The Journal of Nutrition.