In Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), bird's nest is considered as having a neutral (neither hot nor cold) energetic property with special influence on the lungs, kidneys and stomach.  It is traditionally known that bird's nest with whiter appearance is superior for the lungs, having the ability to reduce phlegm, while those orange-reddish ones are excellent for skin problems.

Bird's nest is a superior health food in many ways.  The proteins found in bird's nest, being easily digestible, can be used for convalescing (recovering from serious illness) patients.  It is also widely consumed during pre and post-natal periods.  For beauty care, it has been used to reduce or eliminate liver spots in the elderly, improve complexion and manage skin irritations in babies and adults.

Eu Yan Sang Imperial Golden Concentrated Bird's Nest (Reduced Sugar) is specially prepared from wholesome, premium grade bird's nest, which has been carefully selected and processed to preserve its natural qualities. It is ready-to-drink and suitable for consumption by all ages and can be taken chilled or warm.

• No artificial colouring
• No artificial flavouring
• No preservatives
• No stabilisers

燕窩是燕子吐出的營養豐富的唾液分泌物。此種膠狀分泌物是燕子築巢時的主要材料，而燕子築巢的地點通常選在如懸崖峭壁和深山洞穴等險峻的高處。

燕子的種類有三十多種，其中只有兩種金絲燕屬和一種侏金絲燕屬的燕子會生產可食用燕窩。爪哇金絲燕生產的可食用燕窩品質最佳，因為其顏色白淨且羽毛雜質最少。爪哇金絲燕只分佈於東南亞地區。燕窩的清潔處理過程相當繁複，一個人花八小時的時間只能處理約十個燕窩。

燕窩的主要成份為醣蛋白、碳水化合物和微量元素。香港中文大學的研究人員進行的科學研究發現，燕窩中含有豐富的表皮生長因子（EGF）。表皮生長因子是一種低分子量多肽，具有美容養顏的功效。 燕窩含有的胺基酸種類和數量都非常豐富，包括絲胺酸、蘇胺酸、天門冬胺酸、穀胺酸、脯胺酸和纈胺酸等。因此，食用燕窩對人體健康有益。

余仁生皇絲燕濃縮較低糖燕窩選用上等珍品燕窩精製而成，採用純手工洗燕工藝挑毛去染，保留天然金黃色澤。即開即飲，冷熱皆宜，適合所有年齡層。

• 不含人工色素
• 不含人工香料
• 不含防腐劑
• 不含穩定劑

Water, Sugar, Bird's Nest

Bird's Nest is the nutrient-rich salivary secretion of swiftlets. This gel secretion is an integral component to building the swiftlet nests, which are found in dangerous and highly inaccessible locations like steep cliffs, overhanging crags and deep caves.

Out of more than 30 species of swiflets, only 2 species of the genus Aerodramus and 1 of the genus Collocalia make edible saliva nest. Aerodramus fuciphaga is the swiftlet that produces the highest quality of edible Bird’s Nest, because its nests are white and clean with minimum feathers. It is found only in Southeast Asia. Tedious process of cleaning approximately 10 nests takes approximately 8h by a person¹.

The major components of EBN are its glycoproteins, carbohydrates and trace elements. Scientific findings by the researchers in Chinese University of Hong Kong discovered that epidermal growth factor (EGF) is present in EBN. They demonstrated an epidermal growth factor (EGF)-like activity in aqueous extract of edible bird’s nest that stimulated the DNA synthesis in 3T3 fibroblast in a dose dependent manner in vitro². EGF is a low-MW polypeptide, which stimulates cell growth and proliferation, demonstrating properties of skin and tissue repair.

Major carbohydrates consist of sialic acid (9%), N-acetylgalactosamine (galNAc) (7.2%), N-acetylglucosamine (glcNAc) (5.3%), galactose (16.9%) and fucose (0.7%). There had been studies showing that sialic acid aids in moderating the immune system receptors, preventing entry of bacteria and viruses. The carbohydrate also benefits the brain development of infants³. The other carbohydrate components present demonstrate important roles in signal transduction in cellular communication.

The most abundant amino acids are serine, threonine, aspartic acid, glutamic acid, proline, and valine^{1, 4}.

• Aspartic acid- aids in production of immunoglobulins and antibodies, and helps fight against fatigue.
• Glutamic acid- aids in the metabolism of sugars and fatty acids.
• Proline- Improves skin texture by aiding production of collagen. It reacts with Vitamin C to form healthy connective tissue.
• Serine- aids in the production of immunoglobulins and antibodies. A natural moisturizing agent.
• Threonine- Important for the formation of collagen and elastin
• Valine- Important in muscle metabolism and tissue repair

References:

1.  MF Marcone. Characterization of the edible birds’ nest- the “Caviar of the East”. Food Research Intl 2005, 38; 1125-1134

2.  YC Kong, WM Keung et al. Evidence that epidermal growth factor is present in swiftlet’s (Collocalia) nest. Comparative Biochem and Physiology Pt B: Comparative Biochem 1987, 87(2): 221-226

3.  AA Rashed, WM Wan Nazaimoon. Effect of Edible Bird’s Nest on Caco-2 Cell Proliferation. J Food Tech 2010, 8(3); 126-130

4.  RH Kathan, DI Weeks. Structure studies of collocalia mucoid ☆: I. Carbohydrate and amino acid composition. Arch Biochem and Biophysics 1969, 134(2): 572-576