Ever since the low-fat diets fad started in the mid-80’s eggs have been lumped in with the less healthy foods to eat on occasion. What kicked the mass hysteria was a Time magazine article relating the cholesterol in eggs to the cholesterol that causes heart disease. Thus America’s fear of eggs started.
The article is half right; diets high in cholesterol are linked to heart disease. But there are two types of cholesterol, HDL (good) and LDL (bad). The way I remember this is HDL you want high (h for high) and LDL you want low (l for low). Simple but effective. The diets high in the cholesterol that are linked to heart disease are high in LDL not HDL. Eggs help contribute to HDL. Fried foods and anything made with partially hydrogenated vegetable oil contribute to your LDL being elevated.
So what are eggs good for?
Protein
Egg whites in particular, contain all the essential amino acids, which people need. About 4g in one large egg white and 6g with the yolk.
BCAA’s
Buying branch chained amino acids (BCAA) from the store? Save some change and eat eggs instead. Plus they keep you full longer than a powder.
Vitamins and Mineral
The yolk contains lots of vitamins and minerals, which the body uses everyday to function from vitamin A to zinc.
Testosterone Booster
Egg yolks contain saturated and monosaturated fat that has been shown to elevate testosterone levels. Side note, a study at Texas A&M showed that students consuming 3 eggs a day for 12 weeks gained twice as much muscle and strength than students eating 1,2 or no eggs in the same time frame.
Fat loss
Research at St. Louis University found that eating 2 eggs in the morning can help people consume fewer calories during the course of the day than a carb heavy breakfast would. Also after 12 weeks, there was no change in cholesterol levels.
The egg itself is healthy but the way you cook the egg plays a big role in how healthy the egg is. Frying the egg or cooking in butter raise the saturated fat thus causing an increase in LDL over time. Also, eating bacon, sausage and cheese with your eggs raises the LDL.
There is also debate on brown eggs being local and therefore more healthy. There is no evidence to prove this. In fact, the shell colors are related to the different breed of the laying chicken. No nutritional difference at all.
