Nutrition Information For Egg Whites

Egg whites are an excellent source of protein. Most of the calories in an egg are in the yolk because the yolk contains nearly all of the fat. The white of an egg, however, contains 60 percent of the protein in the egg while containing only 21 percent of the calories. All values in this article are for two raw egg whites. Dietary Reference Intake (DRI) percentages are for adults under age 50.

Calories

Two egg whites contain 32 calories. This is much less than the calories in two whole eggs, because 79 percent of the calories in an egg are in the yolk. Very few of the calories in eggs whites come from carbohydrates. There is less than 1g of carbohydrate in two egg whites and less than .46g of sugar. This is a mix of sucrose, glucose, fructose, lactose, maltose and galactose.

Fat

Two whites contain only .12 g of fat. Egg whites also contain no cholesterol, as opposed to the 426mg of cholesterol in two whole eggs.

Protein

The majority of calories in egg whites come from protein. There are 7.2g of protein in two egg whites, comprised of 18 different amino acids. Egg whites contain all of the essential amino acids, which means they are a complete protein.

Minerals

Eggs whites are low in calories and fat, but they are also low in minerals. Two whites contain less than 5 percent of the DRI of nearly all of the essential minerals, including calcium, magnesium and iron. Two whites do contain nearly 25 percent of the DRI for selenium and more than 5 percent of the DRI for potassium. Selenium helps to defend the body against oxidative stress and regulates the thyroid hormone.

Water-Soluble Vtamins

Egg whites are also low in many water-soluble vitamins. Two whites contain less than 3 percent of vitamin C and of the all B vitamins except riboflavin. Two whites provide more than 25 percent of the DRI for riboflavin. Riboflavin is essential for the metabolism of both carbohydrates and fat.