Eggs: Nutrition, Health Benefits, and Weight Loss

Eggs are considered efficaciously nutritious foods on the planet. Eggs are contemplated badly due to the high level of cholesterol is present in the yolks. However, it has good cholesterol as well which works as the more you consume it the less your body produces it. They are enriched with all the nutrients required to turn a single cell into an entire chicken.

Thus, relying on the consumption of a few eggs won’t trouble you causing a high rise in cholesterol levels.

We at Healthlink.News will try to deliver the enriched benefits of eggs and how much eggs are safe for consumption through this article.

What Happens When People Eat Several Whole Eggs per Day?

We have often been told to limit our intake of eggs or at least egg yolks. A single medium-sized egg has 186 mg of cholesterol, which is 62% of the recommended daily intake (RDI). However, the white portion is only protein and is low in cholesterol.

A maximum intake of 2-6 yolks per week is highly recommendable per week. However, this limitation lacks evidence.

A few studies have examined the effects of eggs on cholesterol levels.

The researchers divided people into two categories where one group consumed 1-3 whole eggs daily while the other relied on the substitute of the egg.

These studies show that:

• In almost all cases, “good” HDL cholesterol goes up
• Total and “bad” LDL cholesterol levels stay the same, often increases slightly.
• Eggs containing omega-3 can lower blood triglycerides.
• Blood levels of carotenoid antioxidants like lutein and zeaxanthin amplify radically.

Every human body works differently. Therefore, the result and consequences totally depend on the individuals for the consumption of eggs.

When researched, around 70% of people reflected no effect on total or “bad” LDL cholesterol. However, the rest 30% called hyper-responders raising the markers slightly up. (1)

The LDL particles shift from small, dense to large when blood cholesterol increases with the daily intake of eggs.

LDL with large particles lowers the risk of heart diseases. Therefore, you do not need to worry about the slight rise in total and LDL cholesterol levels due to the consumption of eggs. Thus, it is recommended safe to consume 3 whole eggs daily by science.

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1. Incredibly Nutritious

Eggs are considered efficaciously nutritious foods on the planet, enriched with all the nutrients required to turn a single cell into an entire chicken.

A single big-sized boiled egg contains:

• Vitamin A: 6% of the RDA
• Folate: 5% of the RDA
• Vitamin B5: 7% of the RDA
• Vitamin B12: 9% of the RDA
• Vitamin B2: 15% of the RDA
• Phosphorus: 9% of the RDA
• Selenium: 22% of the RDA
• Eggs also have decent amounts of Vitamin D, vitamin E, vitamin K, vitamin B6, calcium, and zinc

Therefore, a whole egg has 77 calories, 6 grams of protein, and 5 grams of healthy fats, perfect with all the nutrients required for a healthy human.

Omega-3 enriched and/or pastured eggs are even healthier. They are highly enriched with amounts of omega-3 fat and are much higher in vitamin A and E.

2. High in Cholesterol, but Don’t Adversely Affect Blood Cholesterol

Eggs are high in cholesterol; however, eating eggs does not adversely affect cholesterol in the blood for the majority of people. A whole egg has 212 mg which is half of the recommended daily intake of 300mg.

The liver produces a large amount of cholesterol daily which gets less when your daily intake of dietary cholesterol increases. Cholesterol in the diet does not affect or raise cholesterol in the blood.

However, people have a different body that functions differently affecting the response of consumption of eggs.

• In 70% of people, eggs don’t increase cholesterol at all
• The rest 30% (termed “hyper responders”), eggs can slightly increase total and LDL cholesterol

Avoid or limit your eggs consumption if you have genetic disorders like familial hypercholesterolemia or a gene variant called ApoE4. (2)

3. Raise HDL (The “Good”) Cholesterol

Consumption of eggs constantly leads to high levels of HDL, which stands for high-density lipoprotein which is connected to a lower risk of various diseases. It is considered as the “good” cholesterol. Having higher levels of HDL lowers the risk of heart disease, stroke, and other health problems. Consumption of eggs leads to an increase in HDL. People who consume two eggs daily for six weeks raise their HDL levels by 10%. (3)

4. Contain Choline

An Important Nutrient That Most People Don’t Get Enough Of Choline is a nutrient that is incredibly crucial in our life; however, people are unaware of its existence. Surprisingly, eggs have that vital nutrient used to build cell membranes and play a part in producing signaling molecules in the brain, along with a variety of other functions. Choline is grouped with the B vitamins. The symptoms of choline deficiency are rare but dangerously serious.

Whole eggs are an exceptional source of choline, where a single egg has more than 100mg of vital nutrients.

5. Are Linked to a Reduced Risk of Heart Disease

Just like we have HDL (good) cholesterol we also have LDL. LDL is the bad cholesterol. LDL works distinctively as eating eggs changes the pattern of LDL particles from small, dense LDL (bad) to large LDL. People are aware of high LDL that can result in an increased risk of heart disease. However, they are unaware of how LDL actually functions. It is categorized into subtypes based on the size of the particles. People with small, dense LDL particles have a higher risk of heart diseases than people with large LDL particles.

Consumption of eggs slightly increases LDL cholesterol which is seen as an improvement as the particles change from small, dense to large LDL.

6. Contain Lutein and Zeaxanthin

Antioxidants That Have Major Benefits for Eye Health

Aging has an effect on our whole body including our eyesight which gets worse. Lutein and zeaxanthin are believed to be vital antioxidants that accumulate in the retina of the eye which is responsible for eye health that helps in the prevention of macular degeneration and cataracts. Eggs have a high level of both antioxidants. A study conducted reflects increased blood levels of lutein by 28–50% and zeaxanthin by 114–142% in only 4.5 weeks by consuming 1.3 egg yolks daily. (4)

Eggs are also highly enriched in vitamin A. Vitamin A deficiency is considered to be a serious cause leading to blindness.

7. Omega-3 or Pastured Eggs Lower Triglycerides

Omega-3 enriched and pastured eggs may include significant amounts of omega-3 fatty acids which is an effective option to reduce blood triglycerides which are known as risk factors for heart diseases. Egg’s nutrient composition depends on how the hens were fed and raised. That’s why all eggs are created differently.

According to a study, a person can reduce the risk of triglycerides by 16-18% simply by consuming five omega-3 enriched eggs per week for three consecutive weeks. (5)

8. High in Quality Protein, With the Essential Amino Acids

Proteins are the core building blocks of the human body that are used to build up all sorts of tissues and molecules that provide both structural and functional purposes.

Eggs are considered a high-quality animal protein, a six large egg having nearly 6 grams of it. They contain all the essential amino acids required by our body. Our body is well-equipped due to amino acids present in the right ratio that make full use of protein.

Including a proper balance of protein in our diet is crucial as the study reflects a low amount of protein consumed by humans.

Having the right amount of protein in our diet and maintaining it will promote weight loss, increase muscle mass, lower blood pressure and optimize bone health, etc.

9. It Doest not Raise Your Risk of Heart Disease

Eggs are unnecessarily defamed by humans for quite a while now due to the cholesterol present in them. They are misinterpreted for being bad for the heart. However, studies have claimed no association of egg consumption with heart diseases. 17 studies conducted with participants 263,938 found no connection between egg intake and the risk of heart disease or stroke.

Though few studies claim to arise in risk among people with type 2 diabetes. While some found people diagnosed with diabetes consuming eggs increased the risk of heart disease.

However, these claims lack evidence as the actual cause is not determined with the statistical association, unable to prove that eggs cause the complications.

There might be a probability of people with diabetes consuming eggs are less health-conscious.

If we look at the low-carb diet, considered the most effective diet, egg lead to improvement in risk factors for heart disease among diabetic patients.

10. Help You to Lose Weight

Protein is considered filling and it curbs your appetite. High protein food is known as the most satiating macronutrient.

Eggs top the scale of satiety index that measures the feeling of fullness reducing later calorie intake caused by certain food.

A study conducted on 30 overweight women, consuming eggs instead of a bagel for breakfast found raise in the feeling of fullness cutting their amount of calorie intake for the next 36 hours. (6)

Similarly in another study eating eggs for breakfast instead of bagels resulted in weight loss within eight weeks.

How Much Is Too Much?

Unfortunately, no studies have fed people more than three eggs per day.

It is possible, though unlikely, that eating more than that could negatively impact your health. Consuming more than three is uncharted territory, scientifically speaking.

However, one case study included an 88-year-old man who consumed 25 eggs per day. He had normal cholesterol levels and was in very good health (7).

Of course, the way one individual responds to extreme egg consumption can’t be extrapolated to the whole population, but it’s interesting nonetheless.

It’s also important to keep in mind that not all eggs are the same. Most eggs at the supermarket come from factory-raised chickens fed grain-based feeds.

The healthiest eggs are omega-3-enriched eggs or eggs from hens that are raised in pasture. These eggs are much higher in omega-3s and important fat-soluble vitamins (1, 2).

Overall, eating eggs is perfectly safe, even if you’re eating up to 3 whole eggs per day.

Given their range of nutrients and powerful health benefits, quality eggs may be among the healthiest foods on the planet.

Eggs are one of the few foods that should be classified as “superfoods.”

They are loaded with nutrients, some of which are rare in the modern diet.

Here are 10 health benefits of eggs that have been confirmed in human studies