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Improve the quality of your life. 1/31/2008 An Egg a Day Keeps the Doctor Away   You might say that eggs have come full circle. In the 80’s and 90’s health authorities taught us to think of eggs as poison pellets. Why? Well there were essentially two reasons: too much cholesterol and too much saturated fat. Though cancer is now the leading cause of disease in most industrialized nations, cardiovascular disease used to be the number one cause of death. In 2007 it is second. So with those high CVD rates in mind and with cholesterol levels and saturated fat thought to be major risk factors, health authorities advised that we eat no more than three eggs a week; each egg contains about 185 mg of cholesterol and 1.41 grams of saturated fat, but with new understandings the egg is making a comeback. Slowly but surely, analysis of cholesterol feeding studies (166 studies in 3, 498 individuals) indicated that the plasma total cholesterol response to dietary cholesterol is .023 mg/dl per mg/day of cholesterol. This results in .019 mg/dl in the LDL cholesterol fraction and .004 mg/dl in the HDL fraction. Thus adding 100 mg per day of cholesterol to the diet would be predicted to increase the average plasma level by about 1%. The data indicate that dietary cholesterol increases both atherogenic LDL and anti-atherogenic HDL with little effect on CVD risk because the LDL: HDL ratio, thought to be a major determinant of CVD risk, is unaffected. For example a person with a total cholesterol of 240 mg/dl and an HDL cholesterol level of 45 mg/dl who adds one egg a day (200 mg cholesterol eggs were used) to their diet would increase their plasma total cholesterol by 4 mg/dl, and their HDL by 1 mg/dl, leaving their ratio and risk of heart disease unchanged. It is this absence of the dietary cholesterol effect on the LDL: HDL ratio which explains the findings from epidemiological surveys that dietary cholesterol is unrelated to CVD risk. The Harvard School of Public Health found no relationship between egg consumption and CVD in a population of over 177,000 men and women. They found no difference in heart disease risk between those who consumed less than one egg a week and those who ate more than one egg a day. The authors, not wanting to be too enthused, conservatively concluded, “These findings suggest that consumption of up to 1 egg per day is unlikely to have substantial overall impact on the risk of CHD or stroke among healthy men and women.” Thus even the American Heart Association has taken notice of the evidence that cholesterol from eggs is not a risk for heart disease and is now allowing us an egg per day rather than three per week. Three of the highest egg consuming countries in the world are Japan, Spain, and France; countries with some of the lowest rates of CVD mortality. As the fear of cholesterol fades and becomes less of an issue, we can now, as people have done for thousands of years, once again begin to enjoy eggs. Of course today we know more about eggs than just their culinary delights. We now know eggs are really giant vitamin and mineral pills. Eggs contain all the known vitamins and minerals except one, vitamin C and the price of 6 grams of protein per egg is only 65 calories and .4 net carbs. Beyond high quality, digestible protein and excellent nutrient density, eggs also add to our input of healthy phytochemicals, antioxidants, and fatty acids. Eggs contain two carotenoids, lutein and zeaxanthin. Research shows they may be important in reducing the risk of cataracts and age related macular degeneration as well as CVD. These carotenoids accumulate in the macular region of the eye and are thought to help protect the eye from ultraviolet radiation damage. Other studies also suggest that high intakes of lutein and zeaxanthin in spinach and broccoli help reduce macular degeneration and cataracts. These carotenoids, like most of the other nutrients, are found in the yolks. It appears the human body assimilates lutein and zeaxanthin from eggs much more efficiently than from vegetable sources. Data from the Beaver Dam Eye Study indicated that higher egg consumption has beneficial effects on aging eyes. The relative risk of cataracts was .4 for people in the highest category of egg consumption and 1 for those in the lowest category. Egg restrictions for older people deprive them of a nutrient dense, low calorie food which is a good source of two important xanthophylls. The National Academy of Sciences recently recognized choline as an essential nutrient; advising 425 mg/day for women and 550 mg/day for men.A large egg has 215 grams of choline. Animal studies reveal that choline plays an essential role in brain function, especially in memory. Data also indicate that dietary choline treatment can render new long-term memories less susceptible to disruption following training. Administration of choline to mice with induced dementia improved memory. Choline experts advise pregnant and lactating mothers to increase their egg intake to insure optimal dietary choline levels. One of the other objections to eggs was their perceived saturated fat content, which according to the lipid theory of heart disease is an intake no no. The actual content of a standard commercial egg yields about 4.5 grams of fat. The saturated fat content is only 1.41 grams and the mono-unsaturated/poly-unsaturated portion is 3.09 grams. We encourage you to buy eggs laid by free range, bug and flax eating chickens. This will restore the healthier omega-6 to omega-3 balance. In fact omega-3 eggs usually have 8-10 times more omega-3 content than commercial eggs. A typical commercial egg contains .03 grams of omega-3 and flax eating chickens about .3 grams although there are some feeding programs which produce .7 grams. You can equal the omega-3 content of 3 ounces of wild caught salmon by eating two high omega-3 eggs. Remember omega-3 fatty acids increase the ratio of good HDL to “bad” LDL which decreases the occurrence of blood clots and arrhythmias. Nutrition scientist Nancy Lewis found that people with high cholesterol who ate two omega-3 eggs, six days a week, decreased their serum triglyceride levels by 14% with no increase in total cholesterol. Enjoy your eggs!     < BACK TO HEADLINES

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