Are Eggs Bad For Cholesterol | Cholesterol In Eggs Good Or Bad

Are Eggs Bad For Cholesterol |
Cholesterol In Eggs Good Or Bad

If you love eating eggs, at some point of time or other a thought must have crossed your mind – Are eggs bad for cholesterol? In today’s lifestyle one often battles with the question, whether cholesterol in eggs good or bad? Though eggs come most handy and convenient breakfast diet packed with power of protein and nutrients, still we have a concern – are eggs bad for cholesterol. Well, we will try to find answers to this concern here.

Though eggs are high in cholesterol which can contribute to high blood cholesterol levels, this varies from person to person. Eating too many eggs in a day may increase your cholesterol, but if you eat moderately, eating upto four eggs in a week has not been found to increase your cholesterol levels.

What Is The Recommended Number Of Eggs That You Can Eat:

You can eat eggs without guilt, just keep the daily cholesterol limits under check when you are including eggs in your diet.

For a healthy individual, the recommended daily limit of dietary cholesterol is under 300 mg.

For an individual with diabetes, cardiovascular diease or high low density lipoprotein (LDL or bad cholesterol) level the recommended daily limit of dietary cholesterol is under 200 mg.

An egg contains 186 mg of cholesterol all of which is in the yolk, therefore on the day you eat egg you should limit your intake of other dietary cholesterol. If you love eating eggs, you can consider eating egg whites only which do not contain cholesterol.

Studies Show Eggs Increase Good Cholesterol Levels:

The new studies from the University of Connecticut found eating eggs actually increased good cholesterol (HDL) levels and reduced disease producing inflammation in the body which indicates cholesterol in eggs are good for health.

Researchers asked one group of participants on carbohydrate restricted diet to have three eggs per day while another group were asked to have equivalent amount of egg substitute. After 12 weeks the group which ate eggs experienced increase in HDL (Good Cholesterol) levels from 50 mg/dl to 59 mg/dl, doctors recommend HDL levels over 40 mg/dl in men. This group did not experience change in their LDL (Bad Cholesterol) levels.

According to Maria Luz Fernandez, Ph.D., nutrition professor at the University of Connecticut Lecithin, a substance found in the egg yolks, helps remove cholesterol from tissue and transports it to the liver, so it doesn’t build up in blood vessels.

Fernandez further says, in another study people on carbohydrate restricted diet with metabolic diseases who ate three eggs for 12 weeks experienced  decrease in inflammatory markers in the body indicating the decrease in the risk of heart diseases. An antioxidant caroteinoid called Lutein found in the yolk probably helped to reduce this inflammation.

Fernandez concludes that eating eggs do not cause heart diseases, infact they do the opposite.

Nutrients In Eggs:

Though eggs have cholesterol, they are also known to be an excellent source of nutrients and high quality proteins. Eggs are the natural source of vitamin D. Eggs also contain vitamins B6 and B12, folate, choline, and riboflavin, nutrients which are believed to prevent heart diseases.

According to a study by researchers in Canada, eggs are believed to contain antioxidants which help control inflammation thereby preventing heart diseases. Accoridng to scientists at the University of Alberta eggs have similar oxidant properties to that of an apple.