Is Egg Drop Soup Healthy?
Egg drop soup is a classic Chinese dish containing chicken broth flavored with ginger and soy and thickened with cornstarch. To make the soup at home, pour beaten eggs into heated broth to produce light strings of cooked egg. Top the soup with chopped scallions.
Egg drop soup is a classic Chinese dish containing chicken broth flavored with ginger and soy and thickened with cornstarch. To make the soup at home, pour beaten eggs into heated broth to produce light strings of cooked egg. Top the soup with chopped scallions. This low-calorie soup can be part of a healthy diet for most people, although the sodium content can be high.
Calories and Fat
A 1-cup serving of egg drop soup contains 96 to 100 calories, making this soup a good choice for a warming snack or the first course to your meal. Egg drop soup contains up to 3 grams of fat per serving, and it may have 1 gram of saturated fat, depending on the brand or restaurant. As such, nearly 30 percent of calories in a serving of this soup derive from fat. You should limit your total fat to 20 to 35 percent of your daily calories, according to the Centers for Disease Control.
Carbohydrates and Protein
Egg drop soup is relatively low in carbohydrates, with 3 grams of carbs per serving. As your daily meal plan should contain 225 to 325 grams of carbs, you can add a side of rice with a portion of steamed Chinese chicken and broccoli to your serving of soup. This also increases your protein intake. Egg drop soup provides 8 grams of protein and the National Institutes of Health advises that you consume 50 to 65 grams of protein each day.
Vitamins and Minerals
Egg drop soup is not rich in vitamins or minerals. One serving of soup contains less than 5 percent of the recommended daily value for riboflavin, vitamin B-12, vitamin B-6 and thiamin. One serving also provides small amounts of calcium, vitamin A, zinc, phosphorus, iron and vitamin D as well.
Sodium
Consider making egg drop soup at home to control the amount of salt that goes into it – commercially available varieties of egg drop soup contain as much as 900 milligrams of sodium per serving, and cutting back on the salt and choosing low-sodium soy sauce can reduce the amount of sodium in each cup. If you're a healthy person, the CDC advises that you may consume up to 2,300 milligrams of sodium per day; however, if you have hypertension, or high blood pressure, you should limit your consumption to 1,500 milligrams. Consuming more than this amount on a regular basis can raise blood pressure and result in heart problems.
Considerations
Do not consume egg drop soup if you have egg allergies. KidsHealth indicates that most people outgrow egg allergies as they age, but some adult allergies persist. Symptoms of this allergy include hives or other skin reactions, nausea and vomiting, a decrease in blood pressure and heart palpitations. If you experience breathing problems, consult a physician immediately.