Every 100 g of dry swallow nest contains 49.9 g of water-soluble protein (including amido nitrogen, monoamine nitrogen, non-amino nitrogen, arginine nitrogen, humin, histidine nitrogen, lysine nitrogen and cysteine nitrogen), 30.6 g carbohydrate (glycoprotein and mucin), 4.9 g iron, 2.5 g inorganic salt (including potassium, sodium, calcium, magnesium, sulfur, phosphorus, silica and other trace elements), 1.4 g fiber and 10.7 g others (see "The History of Chinese Medicine and the Nutrition Table," Chinese-English Dictionary of Traditional Chinese Medicine, China: Guangdong Science & Technology Publishing House, 1988).
The energy value per 100 g swallow nest is 345 kilocalories. In the article "Yan Wo Kao" (The Investigation on Swallow Nest) in Mingpao Monthly Vol. 231 (May 1985), Prof. Y. C. Kong and Prof. P. S. Kwan of the Chinese University of Hong Kong reported their research on the tonic food. Based on repeatable results of in vitro exposure experiments the researchers discovered that swallow nest contains a "cell division inducing hormone" and an "epidermal growth factor" that can stimulate the growth and division of cells, thereby enhancing tissue growth, cellular regeneration, and cell-mediated immunity in humans.
Their investigations have provided scientific evidence that supports the traditional beliefs that swallow nest can facilitate metabolism, nourish the skin tone, replenish strength and vital energy, accelerate the recovery from diseases and reinforce immunity. The specific animal proteins in an edible swallow nest have the following three functions;
1. To stimulate the regeneration of cells.
2. To enhance cell-mediated immunity.
3. To enhance the resistance of an individual to X-irradiated damage.
This active protein is easily absorbable by humans, making it unique among foods. The report also states that the "cell division inducing hormone" in swallow nest is activated at around 80 ¢J, while overheating it would destroy the nutritients. This is why double-steaming is recommended in the Cooking Procedure. But Dr. Gu Hsiao Pei takes a somewhat different view from Prof. Y. C. Kong on the potential benefits of epidermal growth factor ( EGF) of swallow nest.
In his column entitled "Are you suitable to have swallow nest?" (Hong Kong Economic Journal March 7, 2006), Dr Gu allows that as swallow nest comes from the saliva of swiftlets (Aerodramus fuciphagus), so it is possible that saliva of other animals also contain EGF.
Since EGF serves to stimulate cell proliferation, this may explain why animals tend to lick their wounds with saliva, probably an instinctive use of saliva in healing wounds. However, argues Dr Gu, it is one thing for EGF to help heal wounds, it is quite another for EGF to help proliferate cancer cells in cancer patients.
As breast cancer patients are advised to abstain from having clam pastes because the estrogen in the food could cause cancer cell proliferation, cancer patients should also be so advised about having swallow nests. In addition to stimulating the proliferation of cancer cells, EGF could also promote three factors that allow the proliferation of blood vessels. These three factors are vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), beta fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) and transforming growth factor alpha (TGF£\). Cancer cells depend on blood vessels to transmit nutrients to them for growth.
For this reason, cancer patients must suppress blood vessel proliferation. One way doing so is to abstain from having swallow nests. Also, the cause of macular degeneration, another common illness for elders, is the proliferation of new blood vessels on retina. For these patients, writes Dr Gu, they should also abstain from having swallow nests, or else their body would manufacture some unnecessary new blood vessels.
The energy value per 100 g swallow nest is 345 kilocalories. In the article "Yan Wo Kao" (The Investigation on Swallow Nest) in Mingpao Monthly Vol. 231 (May 1985), Prof. Y. C. Kong and Prof. P. S. Kwan of the Chinese University of Hong Kong reported their research on the tonic food. Based on repeatable results of in vitro exposure experiments the researchers discovered that swallow nest contains a "cell division inducing hormone" and an "epidermal growth factor" that can stimulate the growth and division of cells, thereby enhancing tissue growth, cellular regeneration, and cell-mediated immunity in humans.
Their investigations have provided scientific evidence that supports the traditional beliefs that swallow nest can facilitate metabolism, nourish the skin tone, replenish strength and vital energy, accelerate the recovery from diseases and reinforce immunity. The specific animal proteins in an edible swallow nest have the following three functions;
1. To stimulate the regeneration of cells.
2. To enhance cell-mediated immunity.
3. To enhance the resistance of an individual to X-irradiated damage.
This active protein is easily absorbable by humans, making it unique among foods. The report also states that the "cell division inducing hormone" in swallow nest is activated at around 80 ¢J, while overheating it would destroy the nutritients. This is why double-steaming is recommended in the Cooking Procedure. But Dr. Gu Hsiao Pei takes a somewhat different view from Prof. Y. C. Kong on the potential benefits of epidermal growth factor ( EGF) of swallow nest.
In his column entitled "Are you suitable to have swallow nest?" (Hong Kong Economic Journal March 7, 2006), Dr Gu allows that as swallow nest comes from the saliva of swiftlets (Aerodramus fuciphagus), so it is possible that saliva of other animals also contain EGF.
Since EGF serves to stimulate cell proliferation, this may explain why animals tend to lick their wounds with saliva, probably an instinctive use of saliva in healing wounds. However, argues Dr Gu, it is one thing for EGF to help heal wounds, it is quite another for EGF to help proliferate cancer cells in cancer patients.
As breast cancer patients are advised to abstain from having clam pastes because the estrogen in the food could cause cancer cell proliferation, cancer patients should also be so advised about having swallow nests. In addition to stimulating the proliferation of cancer cells, EGF could also promote three factors that allow the proliferation of blood vessels. These three factors are vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), beta fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) and transforming growth factor alpha (TGF£\). Cancer cells depend on blood vessels to transmit nutrients to them for growth.
For this reason, cancer patients must suppress blood vessel proliferation. One way doing so is to abstain from having swallow nests. Also, the cause of macular degeneration, another common illness for elders, is the proliferation of new blood vessels on retina. For these patients, writes Dr Gu, they should also abstain from having swallow nests, or else their body would manufacture some unnecessary new blood vessels.
