Are eggs bad for you? The easy answer is no. Twenty years ago, people with cholesterol were told to stay away from eggs, today, nutritionists and doctors look at eggs a bit differently. If the other foods in your diet are low in cholesterol, eggs are a good source of protein for most people. Should you eat them with bacon, ham or breakfast steak every day and expect to get a rousing round of applause from your doctor or great blood profiles? Absolutely not. You need some cholesterol in your diet, but you can also get too much of a good thing.
Recent studies show that eating up to 12 eggs a week wasn’t bad for diabetics and prediabetics.
In a recent study on people with prediabetes or type two diabetes, increasing egg consumption to twelve eggs a week did not increase the risk of cardiovascular disease. However, the subjects were also following a healthy diet. A Chinese study found an egg a day lowered the risk of stroke and heart disease. The participants in this study, however, were eating a traditional, not a Western, diet.
Your body makes cholesterol if you don’t eat enough.
If you consume foods with cholesterol, your body doesn’t have to make as much. Yes, you can overdo a good thing, which is why it’s important to look at the other food you eat, besides just the eggs. An egg or two a day won’t bump up cholesterol levels if the rest of your diet is healthy. Cholesterol is important, since it is necessary to make cell membranes, testosterone, estrogen and cortisol.
Eggs may increase cholesterol levels, but new studies show it’s the good cholesterol.
In one study, there were two groups. One group at one to three whole eggs a day and the other ate no eggs or egg substitutes. The group that ate real eggs did increase cholesterol levels, but it was the HDL cholesterol, the good one. The LDL, bad cholesterol, was unchanged. Eggs also provided other benefits to the group that consumed them. It helped improve blood levels of zeaxanthin and lutein. Both are antioxidant carotenoids. Eggs contain omega-3 fatty acids which lowered triglyceride levels that may increase the risk of heart disease.
- Eggs provide a feeling of satiety and keep you feeling fuller longer. Having a hard-boiled egg for a snack is quick and simple, plus it comes in its own container so it transports easily.
- As a breakfast, eggs provide far more protein than toast, cereal or pancakes, yet often is far more inexpensive. When you consider the cost of meat substituting eggs for meat products is like getting protein at a discount.
- Some recent observational studies showed that those who consumed eggs were no more likely to have a heart attack than those who didn’t eat eggs. Some of those same studies also show that eating eggs may actually lower the risk of stroke.
- If you have high cholesterol or other serious condition, always discuss any change in your diet with your health care professional. Each person is different, so always listen to your health care professional.
For more information, contact us today at Next Level Fitness