Dipping a piece of toast into the runny yolk of eggs over easy might be your idea of a delicious breakfast, but the FDA recommends against it. Eating eggs in moderation is nutritious, but cooking them over easy puts you at risk of salmonella poisoning. Talk to your doctor before making any changes in your diet, especially if you have health conditions or allergies.
Nutrition of Eggs
The nutritional value of eggs stays the same no matter which way you cook them. If you like your eggs over easy, there is no nutritional difference between them and scrambled eggs. One egg over easy contains 95 calories, 7 g fat, 213 mg cholesterol, 63 g sodium, 1 mg carbohydrate, 6 g protein and 1 g sugar.
Eggs and Cholesterol
Eggs are high in protein, but they're also high in cholesterol. If you have healthy blood cholesterol levels, limit your cholesterol intake to 300 mg per day or less. If you have diabetes, high levels of bad cholesterol or cardiovascular disease, limit your cholesterol intake to 200 mg or less per day. Because one egg contains approximately 215 mg cholesterol, stick with one egg per day at the most.
Additional Ingredients
Whether you're cooking eggs at home or ordering them at a diner, you might accumulate more fat and calories by the ingredients you choose. For instance, cooking one over easy egg with 1 tbsp. butter adds 100 calories, 11 g fat, 30 mg cholesterol and 90 mg sodium to your breakfast. Using 1 tbsp. olive oil to cook an egg adds 120 calories and 13.5 g fat. Because olive oil contains mostly monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats, it is a healthier choice for cooking eggs than butter, as long as you use it sparingly.
Preventing Salmonella
Any egg dish that contains runny eggs -- including eggs over easy -- contains undercooked yolks. Undercooked yolks potentially carry salmonella bacteria, which might cause food poisoning if you eat them. The FDA recommends cooking egg yolks until they are completely firm, instead of leaving them runny. Although the way you cook eggs is ultimately up to you, you put yourself at risk of developing salmonella food poisoning if you continue to eat eggs over easy. Consult your doctor before eating eggs over easy if you could be pregnant or if you have a medical condition.
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