How Long Does It Take To Digest An Egg? When To Eat?

February 2, 2024 by Pranay David

An Egg is one of the superfoods which is included often in every diet and cooking. This nutrient rich healthy food provides numerous benefits to your body. A lot of people incorporate eggs in their breakfast, lunch, and even dinner due to their wonderful nutritional facts.

As it is great to have eggs in your eating habits, you should also be conscious of its digestion time. Here is the article that educates you on how long it takes to digest eggs.

Article Contains

Egg Nutritional Rich Food

Before getting into our topic, let us know the nutritional facts of eggs. The egg comprises albumen which is the white part, and yolk, the yellow part. Lipids, carbohydrates, protein, water and other minerals are the main constituents that are rich in egg.

Eggs provide a major source of protein and other nutritional elements.

Eggs are the high-quality protein powerhouse that provides the desired protein to your body.

They are enriched with vitamin D and healthy fats.(1)

How Long It Takes To Digest Eggs?

Despite it containing the same nutrients as any other protein rich meals, eggs are easier to digest. When it comes to keeping your body and digestive system fit and healthy, eggs are the important power of nutrition but they may also lead to discomfort if they are not digested properly.

White eggs are more accessible to digestion than yellow. Moreover, egg yolk digests in 30 minutes and the whole egg requires 45 minutes to digest.(2)

Hard Boiled Egg

Since eggs contain heat sensitive proteins, their proteinic structure is lost in the case of hard boiled eggs. Consequently, it becomes difficult for digestion. Hard boiled eggs take about 3 hours to digest.

Soft Boiled Eggs

In soft boiled eggs, only the white portion is cooked whilst the protein part remains intact and it takes about 1.5 hours for digestion.

Scrambled Eggs

Scrambled eggs are very easy to digest. It takes nearly 1 hour for digestion and fried eggs need 2 hours to digest. Also, fried eggs are quite safer to eat as all the contents of the eggs are cooked thoroughly.

However, changing the cooking pattern of eggs changes its time to digest.

It takes approximately 2 hours for a cooked egg to begin to digest, but the maximum peak on the absorption curve is 3-4 hours. For 90 percent uptake, it takes around six hours.

The boiled eggs are the best choice to consume because they do not have any cooking ingredient that needs additional digestion time.

Apart from this, eggs are often suitable for those individuals who are recovering from gastrointestinal illness or experiencing nausea.

Although the white portion contains less fat and is easier to digest, many people suffering from digestive problems may also be able to consume the yolk as well.

Though eggs are good for health, three eggs are enough to be included in your daily diet routine, but they may vary from person to person.

According to a study, eating two eggs a day improves the red blood cells in your blood. Additionally, it helps in losing weight. In order to maintain a healthy lifestyle, eat eggs every day.

Best Time To Eat Eggs

If you want the best results, then eggs are best eaten during your breakfast. It feeds your body with energy and keeps you full all day.

Because your digestive system is at its peak in the morning, it will be easier for you to digest the protein and other nutrients that are rich in eggs.

It is an ideal choice to include eggs in your breakfast to provide its wonderful benefits to your body.

Final Thoughts

Eating eggs whether boiled, scrambled or poached, is a simple and easy process that stipulates a bit of preparation and easy digestion. Overall a whole egg requires 45 minutes to digest while an egg yolk digest in 30 minutes. It aids in maintaining a healthy digestive tract and builds up your muscles.

Scientific Evidence: