# Eating raw eggs to bulk up **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [February 19, 2023, 3:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eating-raw-eggs-to-bulk-up/980038 "2023-02-19T15:08:44Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 16\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2023, 4:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eating-raw-eggs-to-bulk-up/980038/21 "2023-02-20T04:42:10Z")
Raw egg white also has something in it that inactivates the essential vitamin biotin. I found this out when I was in college, not in class but from my sister, who got in trouble with her credit cards and participated in a one-month vitamin deficiency study (and specifically, yes, biotin) for which she was paid $500 to help get herself out. She was given a biotin-free diet, a la Hello Fresh for this, and had to drink daily milkshakes that had that biotin-destroying component in it. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2023, 1:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eating-raw-eggs-to-bulk-up/980038/22 "2023-02-20T13:27:28Z")
I’ll add a raw egg from our hens when making a smoothie. It’s a textural thing, it thickens the drink. ---
**Author:** ![FlikTheBlue](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fliktheblue/32/10972_2.png) [@FlikTheBlue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FlikTheBlue)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2023, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eating-raw-eggs-to-bulk-up/980038/23 "2023-02-20T17:16:24Z")
I was under the assumption that it was just to make Rocky, or whoever else, look tough. The idea being something like “Real men eat raw food, even if it’s risky or tastes bad.” ---
**Author:** ![bibliophage](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bibliophage/32/7615_2.png) [@bibliophage](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bibliophage)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2023, 6:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eating-raw-eggs-to-bulk-up/980038/24 "2023-02-20T18:04:26Z")
Almost 60% of the protein in an egg is in the white. My understanding from reading other studies over the years is that protein from egg yolks, whether raw or cooked, is very well absorbed. Protein from egg whites is very poorly absorbed unless they’re somehow treated, whether by cooking or acidification or some other method that renders it more digestible. I couldn’t find any recent studies to back that up that idea, though. ---
**Author:** ![Lucas\_Jackson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lucas_jackson/32/303_2.png) [@Lucas\_Jackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lucas_Jackson)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2023, 6:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eating-raw-eggs-to-bulk-up/980038/25 "2023-02-20T18:34:27Z")
Gym culture didn’t rely on science, as much as it did on ‘what was done’ and anecdotal bias. If the biggest guy in the gym ate raw eggs, then that must be part of his success. And I’m sure people put them in shakes first (for protein) and moved on to the easy version of eating raw - no time for cooking. ---
**Author:** ![Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mean_mr.mustard/32/3865_2.png) [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mean_Mr.Mustard)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2023, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eating-raw-eggs-to-bulk-up/980038/26 "2023-02-20T19:20:35Z")
> [@puzzlegal](#): > > I assume because it’s a lot easier to drink down raw eggs than to cook them? Not for me it ain’t. mmm ---
**Author:** ![Daithi\_Lacha](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/daithi_lacha/32/5430_2.png) [@Daithi\_Lacha](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Daithi_Lacha)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2023, 8:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eating-raw-eggs-to-bulk-up/980038/27 "2023-02-20T20:25:04Z")
I’ll just note that consuming raw eggs was also viewed as being an aphrodisiac, so much so that a raw egg in a beer was called a “sexy” in old-timey bar parlance. Here’s a quick cite that backs up my sometimes-faulty memory: > **[Egg in your beer?? - phrase meaning and origin](https://www.phrases.org.uk/bulletin_board/6/messages/542.html)** > > Egg in your beer?? - the meaning and origin of this phrase You need more citations? Whaddaya want, an egg in your beer? ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2023, 8:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eating-raw-eggs-to-bulk-up/980038/28 "2023-02-20T20:45:00Z")
I still remember people in the theater saying “Ewww!” when Rocky drank those raw eggs. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2023, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eating-raw-eggs-to-bulk-up/980038/29 "2023-02-20T20:52:21Z")
> [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](#): > > I still remember people in the theater saying “Ewww!” when Rocky drank those raw eggs. ⁢ I’ve actually seen gargling with egg whites suggested as a way to induce vomiting. ---
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2023, 1:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eating-raw-eggs-to-bulk-up/980038/30 "2023-02-21T01:27:36Z")
> [@BigT](#): > > I’ve actually seen gargling with egg whites suggested as a way to induce vomiting Just thinking about it would do it for me… ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2023, 6:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eating-raw-eggs-to-bulk-up/980038/31 "2023-02-21T06:38:40Z")
MAD magazine’s treatment of that scene was something like “5:15am, drink raw eggs…” “5:20am, vomit…” ---
**Author:** ![Toxylon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f05b48/32.png) [@Toxylon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Toxylon)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2023, 10:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eating-raw-eggs-to-bulk-up/980038/32 "2023-02-21T10:02:42Z")
Among strength athletes yearning for extra muscle mass (and dieticians battling obesity), it’s a well-known fact that it’s a lot easier to drink your calories than to eat them. That eggs in particular yield much more usable protein cooked rather than raw, used to be lost in the larger kernel of truth. ---
**Author:** ![md-2000](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9d8465/32.png) [@md-2000](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/md-2000)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2023, 7:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eating-raw-eggs-to-bulk-up/980038/33 "2023-02-23T07:01:12Z")
I also recall that back in the Goode Olde Days (when I was a kid) that stories about very hefty strong men, the guys who were 350 pounds all muscle (wresting, boxing, circus acts etc.) it also always mentioned a hefty diet, including things like a dozen eggs for breakfast (plus a pound or two steak, etc. etc.) The implication was that eggs and meat were best for developing muscle mass. Maybe gym coaches (as in Rocky) felt that the drinking process was faster, or maybe they subscribed to the idea that cooking somehow subtracted from the “potency” of the nutrition boost. Or that in the days before Tfal, cooked eggs included too much fat to make them not stick to the pan. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2023, 9:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eating-raw-eggs-to-bulk-up/980038/34 "2023-02-26T21:17:40Z")
I think it was also the view that “I’m such a badass that drinking raw eggs helps me get stronger in less time and doesn’t disgust me, unlike some less-manly sorts.” ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2023, 5:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eating-raw-eggs-to-bulk-up/980038/35 "2023-03-04T17:32:30Z")
Watching _Mr. Deeds Goes To Town_ (1936). Gary Cooper has just been given a [prairie oyster](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prairie_oyster) to combat a hangover. > A **prairie oyster** (sometimes also **prairie cocktail** ) is a traditional beverage consisting of a raw [egg](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Egg) (often [yolk](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yolk) alone), [Worcestershire sauce](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Worcestershire_sauce), vinegar and/or [hot sauce](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hot_sauce), [table salt](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Table_salt), and ground [black pepper](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_pepper). [Tomato juice](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tomato_juice) is sometimes added, reminiscent of a [Bloody Mary](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bloody_Mary_(cocktail)). The egg is broken into a glass so as not to break the yolk. The mixture is quickly swallowed. The unbroken yolk causes the drink to bear a texture similar to that of an [oyster](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oyster). The concoction has been referred to as a traditional [cure](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hangover_cure) for [hangovers](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hangover), and has appeared in media for decades… > > Though considered a traditional hangover remedy, the prairie oyster has not been scientifically proven to treat hangover symptoms. Headache experts say that a prairie oyster will not work as a remedy for a hangover. ---
**Author:** ![thorny\_locust](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thorny_locust/32/431_2.png) [@thorny\_locust](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thorny_locust)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2023, 6:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eating-raw-eggs-to-bulk-up/980038/36 "2023-03-04T18:21:39Z")
Thanks for info. I had no idea, I thought a prairie oyster was bovine testicles – having looked it up, it seems both meanings are in use; probably depends on where you are (or what you’re reading.) – I would certainly have to swallow that quickly; and I’m not at all sure it would stay down. [ETA: the drink. I haven’t tried the testicles, but it would probably depend on how they were cooked.] [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eating-raw-eggs-to-bulk-up/980038.md?page=1)