The hidden treasure of ESM

If you have browsed through our website, you know that in the Netherlands alone, 30 million eggs are processed and about 181 tons of eggshells are wasted every day. Worldwide, eggshell waste is enormous. According to EC regulations, industrial eggshells are considered as hazardous waste. Scientifically speaking, this waste is recognized as an agricultural bioresource, because of its functions in biological, environmental, and agricultural engineering.

 

Eggshell membrane (ESM) is the protein-rich membrane lining between eggshell and egg white, it has often been regarded as waste and been ignored. However, research has found that this membrane primarily composes of fibrous proteins, which have been used in wound dressing, cell culture, and adsorption of heavy metals. Soluble eggshell membrane (SEP) is more widely used in many fields. It has been tested that SEP has anti-inflammatory, anti-microbial activities and can inhibit collagenase and elastase activities revealing an anti-wrinkle property. Furthermore, it has been shown to increase cellular activity, collagen production, prevent skin aging, reduce damages caused by UV-light and reduce inflammation (Candilish et al., 1969).

 Here is a list of some of the benefits of SEP for skincare:

  • Hydration
  • Anti-inflammatory
  • Reduces skin aging from UV damage
  • Increases collagen production and cellular activity
  • Improve skin smoothness and luminance
  • Reduce acne
figure 1. volunteer testing of SCND SKIN formula

Another use of Eggshell Membrane for tissue repairs

The use of eggshell membrane for pain relief, skincare and accelerating injury recovery can be traced back to the ancient times of China. Nowadays, one of the most profound results from using ESM is on the knee joints. The knee joint is the largest joint in human body and supports our body weight.  Arthritis is a broad term often used to describe any disorder that affects joints. Symptoms generally include joint pain and stiffness. Other symptoms may include redness, warmth, swelling, and decreased range of motion of the affected joints.

Intervention studies used ESM as an ingredient for relieving pain and stiffness in joint discomfort treatment. Results of the study reveals that with ESM relieving treatment, there is long-lasting improvements and it successfully reliefs knee OA pain and improves daily life functioning. (Jeroen Lucas Kiers, et al. 2021)

Bio-Bone supplements from eggshells

Calcium carbonate (calcite) is the main component in eggshells and is the major inorganic substance found in an egg and it makes up about 94% of chemical composition of eggshell. Hydroxyapatite is an excellent material used in bone repair and tissue regeneration.

The use of eggshell to generate hydroxyapatite will reduce the pollution effect of the waste and the subsequent conversion of the waste into a highly valuable product.

The hydroxyapatite synthesized from eggshell has demonstrated superior biocompatibility when compared with hydroxyapatite synthesized from other sources in terms of hardness, density, and cell culture. The hydroxyapatite from eggshells is of good quality because of its resemblance with human hard tissues. The hydroxyapatite has been reported to have significantly higher bone formation (Idris Abdulrahman, et al. 2014)

Sources

R. Wang, et al. (2021) LIOF-EGGSHEET