Food experts say bird's nest nutrition and eggs are similar

Some time ago, the Zhejiang Industry and Commerce Department carried out a sample test on 30,000 blood-swallows and found that the nitrite content was all exceeded, seriously endangering the health of consumers. The exposure of the "Blood Swallow Incident" has focused the public's attention on high-end health products and tonics such as bird's nest and shark fin. How big is the nutritional value of bird's nest and shark's fin? How to deal with consumers rationally and scientifically?

Bird's nest nutrition and eggs are almost bird's nest, which is formed by the mucus and fluffy feather secreted by the digestive glands of the stomach after the swiftlets of the family Swiftidae and many of the same species of swiftlets have taken on the fish, algae and other organisms in the sea. nest. The bird's nest is considered to be able to "resolve phlegm and cough, and to treat debilitating illnesses." So, what is its nutrition and composition?

According to Ma Guansheng, deputy director of the Institute of Nutrition and Food Safety at the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, bird's nest contains approximately 50% protein, 20% carbohydrates, 5% iron, and 3% other minerals. Vitamin concentrations are minimal. From these data, there is not much difference in the nutrient composition between bird's nest and eggs, but the content of individual nutrients is different, but the price difference is large. The nutritional value of the bird's nest, which has been hailed by the Chinese as an advanced tonic, is very limited. Therefore, it is not the more expensive foods that provide more nutrients. In addition to the reasons for nourishing health, eating bird's nest has also become a way for people to show their identity and show their ways. Vanity and wealthy psychology provide a part of market demand for bird's nest.

There is no special nutrition for shark fins Fan Zhihong, associate professor of nutrition and food safety at the Food College of China Agricultural University, said that from a nutritional point of view, the main component of shark's fin is collagen and a small amount of minerals. Macromolecular proteins are not absorbed directly in the human body and collagen is converted into amino acids in the human body. From the nutrition point of view, there is nothing special about shark fins. If you want to get collagen, you don't have to eat shark fins, you can eat trotters, and there are too many foods that can provide collagen.

Fan Zhihong said that shark's fin is not a medicinal material and has no special nutritional value. People who can afford shark fins generally do not lack protein. People who cannot eat shark fins can eat eggs and drink milk to ensure the supply of protein. From an environmental point of view, sharks are already endangered animals. To obtain shark fins, sharks that cut fins will die, affecting the entire ocean's biological chain. In addition, in the marine environment, sharks are at the top of the food chain. Contaminants such as metallic mercury are accumulated and precipitated at the first-order food chain of small fish and big fish, and they accumulate in the body thousands of times in the body of sharks. The half-life of more than 200 days, not easy to discharge.

Not nutrition is more beneficial to the body. Small bird nests and shark fins reflect the misunderstanding of people's nutritional knowledge: The more expensive foods are, the more nutritious the food is, and the more beneficial food is.

Nutrition is the material basis for health. There are more than 40 kinds of nutrients necessary for the maintenance of human life and health. They do their duties in the body and are indispensable. Any deficiency or deficiency of any nutrient will affect the function and health of the body and even cause diseases.

Ma Guansheng suggested that when purchasing food, first of all, there should be a sense of diversity in the food, "from a nutritional point of view, the food is generally divided into five categories. The first category is cereals and potatoes; the second is animal food; The third category is beans and nuts; the fourth category is vegetables, fruits, and bacteria and algae; the fifth category is pure energy foods, including animal and vegetable oils, starches, edible sugar and alcoholic drinks. Similar foods and similar foods must be varied and constantly changing. Special attention should be paid to the consumption of dark vegetables to make up half of the total vegetable intake. Attention should also be paid to increasing the intake of cruciferous vegetables and algae and algae.”

Nutrition cannot be lacking, but it is by no means the better. Ma Guansheng said: "Protein is very important for health, but it does not mean that the more the better, too much will affect the health. Excessive intake of protein, the decomposition of protein in the body increased, the nitrogen content of substances excreted from the urine also increased, It will increase the load on the kidneys, accelerate the loss of calcium in bones and increase the risk of osteoporosis."