Increase Vitamin E

How about tossing in some whole eggs to a colorful salad? According to research from Purdue University this will boost the amount of Vitamin E . Vitamin E is the second-most under consumed nutrient in the average American diet. This is problematic because this fat-soluble nutrient has antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties, according to Wayne Campbell, a professor of nutrition science. His belief is that by adding eggs to a salad with colorful vegetables, it will improve their diets.

Vitamin E absorption was 4 to 7 fold higher when three whole eggs were added to a salad, according to a study from Purdue’s Department of Nutrition Science. The study measured the absorption of Vitamin E from real foods, rather than supplements, which contain a mega-dose amount of Vitamin E.

Dietary fats and Vitamin E are absorbed and also found in oils, seeds and nuts. Amino acids are found in the nutrient-rich food, eggs. The research also highlighted how one food can improve the nutrition value of another food when they are consumed together. These findings are published in The Journal of Nutrition and are supported by the American Egg Board’s Egg Nutrition Center, National Institutes of Health and Purdue Ingestive Behavior Research Center.

This particular study is an extension of a study that Campbell and Jung Eun Kim, a postdoctoral researcher in Purdue’s Department of Nutrition Science, reported in June 2015 showing that by adding eggs to a salad there was an overall increased absorption of the vegetables’ carotenoids.

A previous study that was conducted by Campbell and Ferruzzi, a professor at North Carolina State University, has shown that more carotenoids are absorbed when one large salad is consumed at a meal, compared to smaller salads consumed at two meals during the day. The research also focused on understanding how dietary protein and exercise influence adult health as people age.

—Dr Fredda Branyon