The egg is one of the foods that have been the most controversial subject among all nutritionists.
One argument says that ‘egg is good for you,’ and the counter-argument will say that ‘egg is bad for you.’
The cholesterol factor in the egg is the bone of contention that heats the augments for and against this superfood.
The whole din of controversies on eggs was set in motion by the American Heart Association (AHA), which recommended not more than 300mg cholesterol intake per day to ward off cardiovascular diseases.
A single large boiled egg alone contains about 185mg of cholesterol. If this is the case, two eggs a day can give you heart disease, as per the recommendations of AHA.
So the egg is bad for you. Can this be true?
NO… not at all.
AHA’s recommendation failed to state whether the good cholesterol (HDL) or bad cholesterol (LDL) should be limited.
The cholesterol that is deposited into your blood and the cholesterol you eat is not equal anyways.
Keeping aside the cholesterol aspect, those traditional critics of the egg have failed to value this wholesome food’s numerous health benefits.
Let us look at some of the best health benefits of eggs that make them one of the unavoidable food items you should have on your daily menu.
Eggs Are Good For Weight Loss
It may be a bit surprising for you to know that egg is good for weight loss.
Whenever you have eggs included in your food, you will not feel hungry for at least hours.
The egg is unusually filling and satiating.
Like the other protein-rich foods, this food contains the most satiating macronutrient.
Eggs and meat are placed very high on Satiety Index; they make you feel less hungry and help you arrest the urge to have high calories food.
One of the studies on 30 overweight women found that eating two eggs for breakfast made them feel full, and they ate very few calories for the next 30 hours or more.
There are also other studies in which the participants who were fed an egg breakfast showed significant weight loss results compared to those who were on bagel breakfast in 8 weeks.
In another controlled trial — the best kind of research – good things happened with people who took three eggs daily as part of a controlled weight-loss diet.
This study’s important outcome was a significant weight reduction, improvement in blood cholesterol levels, and a substantial decrease in inflammation.
The egg breakfast diet not only suppresses your appetite but also provides many essential vitamins and nutrients.
Protein-rich food like the egg is good for quicker satiation and reducing interest in high-calorie foods.
Eggs Is A Nutritious, Wholesome Food
The egg is an amazing food containing essential vitamins and nutrients for health. It is a nice food that contains the required nutrients in small amounts each.
In the graph below, you can see all the important nutrients contained in a single-boiled egg.
It contains about 75 calories and 10 grams of protein and fats.
The white of the egg is pretty much only the protein and water.
The egg yolk contains abundant nutrients, vitamins, and antioxidants that cannot be found in any other food on earth.
The people, who have been opposing egg yolk for “hearty” reasons, should know that egg yolk has Omega-3 fatty acid that is exceptionally good for the heart’s health.
The choline nutrient, good for cell membranes and signaling molecules in the brain, is found in the egg yolk.
Nearly 100 mg of choline nutrient is found in single egg yolk; it is the best natural source to get this nutrient that most people lack.
The Cholesterol In The Egg Is Good For Health
In the past, people frowned at the egg as it was thought to create most cholesterol issues and heart diseases.
The old notion was that eating egg yolks would dangerously increase your blood cholesterol (even today, most nutritionists hold on to this false impression).
The truth is very different; all the cholesterols are not bad for health.
Consuming cholesterol-rich food like eggs does not necessarily increase the bad cholesterol in the blood.
Cholesterol is a very important nutrient that our body should have.
It contributes to building up cell membranes and body growth. It is also essential for producing many hormones.
The medical community and most people are very slow to reverse the outdated and hypothetical recommendations of the American Heart Association on eating egg yolk.
Eating eggs has the least impact on heart disease. It is from the findings of recent medical research done on thousands of people suffering from heart ailments.
It is also true that the ‘cholesterol set point’ already exists in our body; the liver usually produces more than 2 grams of cholesterol every day, even without any cholesterol food we eat.
When we eat more eggs, the brain signals the liver to produce less cholesterol.
The eggs do not increase the LDL Cholesterol level in any significant amount.
Egg contributes to the increase of High-Density Lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol which is very important for our health.
Good cholesterol (HDL) does not lead to the development of heart disease or stroke.
In some research on the implication of eggs’ cholesterol on health, it was found that two eggs per day can increase up to 10% HDL cholesterol in 6 weeks.
The cholesterol in a large boiled egg is not even 5% of the cholesterol naturally produced by our liver daily.
Egg Is Good For Your Eyes
If your eyesight is becoming weak and your vision is getting blared, your body probably lacks two very important nutrients found in the egg; Lutein and Zeaxanthin.
These two are very powerful antioxidants that are very helpful in protecting the health of the retina by preventing cataracts.
Right amounts of Lutein and Zeaxanthin nutrients ward off possibilities of macular degeneration and cataracts.
As we get older, having at least two eggs a day is good for better eyes health.
Vitamin A is another excellent nutrient in the egg that can do a lot of good for your eyes. Most gradual vision impairment cases occur mostly because of a grave deficiency in Vitamin A.
Egg Is A Good Source For Protein And Amino Acids
If you are into regular workouts in a gym to shed fat and build lean muscles, your trainer might have advised you to include a few ‘egg whites in your daily diet plan.
The egg white is rich in high-quality protein that our bodies can easily absorb.
The body must regularly supply good protein for every cell and tissue regeneration and build-up.
The egg is the best natural source of healthy protein. Our body can get up to 6 grams of protein from a single large boiled egg.
The amino acid is the building block that helps the protein to grow and protect cells and tissues.
Most of our cells and tissues are made up of amino acids. They are very important for the body in carrying out many functions, and they determine even the structure of the cells.
The amino acid requirements of our body can be amply supported by the eggs we eat.
The proteins and amino acids in the egg are excellent for building lean muscles, strengthening the bones and cell structures, growing, maintaining a balanced blood pressure level, etc.
Egg Prevent Heart Diseases And Stroke
Previously, nutritionists condemned eggs as the number one culprit for heart diseases and strokes.
The natural cholesterol found in the egg was thought to be the villain.
Thanks to the many scientific research and studies conducted in the past decades on eggs to unearth the goodness and importance of eggs for good health.
I came across a synthesized result of 17 major studies, which included 263,938 participants; the results’ analysis claimed no significant connection between the consumption of eggs with heart disease and stroke.
The eggs may not be all that good for people with diabetes as they can increase the risk of heart disease. This awareness is based on the statistical association of eggs’ impact on the person with diabetes; the exactness of this assumption is still under research.
Final Thoughts
Ultimately, it is good to note that most previous assumptions on eggs’ impact on health hazards are untrue. At least, this is what the latest studies and research suggest.
Eggs will not increase LDL cholesterol as it was previously assumed to be. There is a very rare possibility that eggs can cause heart diseases.
Some studies suggest that people with diabetes, who already has a weak metabolism, could avoid having egg as food. Diabetes patients are more prone to heart diseases, and the cholesterol found in the egg can aggravate heart diseases in them.
Eating an egg or two will make a small difference in cholesterol.
Going by the findings and recommendations of recent studies, up to 3 whole eggs per day is safe and healthy.
There is no evidence to prove that more eggs a day can cause any serious harm to health.
However, people with genetic disorders like familial hypercholesterolemia or a gene type called ApoE4 may think of avoiding or minimizing the use of eggs.
Various essential vitamins and nutrients in the egg are readily available to our bodies.
Not having an egg in our diet is a big loss. If you avoid eggs, you may have to have many other diet varieties to get the nutrients and vitamins in the egg.
When you know about the great amounts of nutrients in the egg, I am sure you, too, will agree that there is hardly any other food that is as perfect as the egg.
Lastly, keep these points in mind:
- Don’t believe in the ideas of sensationalistic food fads which are clamoring for banning the egg
- Include eggs in your daily diet along with varied nutrient-rich whole foods
- Eat 2 to 3 eggs daily and test your cholesterol levels after 60 days to see if the egg is bad for you.
Read next:
- Is Eating Meat Good For You?
- Why Should You Eat Fish?