Study: One Egg Per Day Is OK
By Chauncey Crandall, M.D.
For years, there’s been a back-and-forth about the health benefits or risks of eating eggs. One day scientists say stay away, the next day they recommend.
But a major new study should make egg lovers breathe a sigh of relief. You can enjoy an egg a day without having to worry about your heart.
Special: How to Keep Your Doctor From Lecturing You About Cholesterol
"Moderate egg intake, which is about one egg per day in most people, does not increase the risk of cardiovascular disease or mortality, even if people have a history of cardiovascular disease or diabetes," said study lead author Mahshid Dehghan, investigator at the Population Health Research Institute (PHRI) of McMaster University in Hamilton, Canada.
The study analyzed data on more than 177,000 people from three large, long-term international studies, all conducted by the PHRI. The three studies involved people with various income levels in 50 different countries on six continents.
"No association was found between egg intake and blood cholesterol," Deghan said. "These results are robust and widely applicable to both healthy individuals and those with vascular disease."
Study principal investigator Salim Yusuf pointed out prior studies about eggs and health have yielded conflicting findings.
"Most of these studies were relatively small or moderate in size and did not include individuals from a large number of countries," Yusuf said.
And Audrey Koltun, registered dietitian at Cohen Children's Medical Center in Lake Success, New York, says eggs are loaded with nutrients.
"They have many essential vitamins and minerals as well as very high-quality protein," Koltun said. "The egg white contains most of the protein; the yolk contains iron, phosphorus, fat-soluble vitamins including vitamin D, B vitamins, healthy fat, and other valuable nutrients."
By Chauncey Crandall, M.D.
For years, there’s been a back-and-forth about the health benefits or risks of eating eggs. One day scientists say stay away, the next day they recommend.
But a major new study should make egg lovers breathe a sigh of relief. You can enjoy an egg a day without having to worry about your heart.
Special: How to Keep Your Doctor From Lecturing You About Cholesterol
"Moderate egg intake, which is about one egg per day in most people, does not increase the risk of cardiovascular disease or mortality, even if people have a history of cardiovascular disease or diabetes," said study lead author Mahshid Dehghan, investigator at the Population Health Research Institute (PHRI) of McMaster University in Hamilton, Canada.
The study analyzed data on more than 177,000 people from three large, long-term international studies, all conducted by the PHRI. The three studies involved people with various income levels in 50 different countries on six continents.
"No association was found between egg intake and blood cholesterol," Deghan said. "These results are robust and widely applicable to both healthy individuals and those with vascular disease."
Study principal investigator Salim Yusuf pointed out prior studies about eggs and health have yielded conflicting findings.
"Most of these studies were relatively small or moderate in size and did not include individuals from a large number of countries," Yusuf said.
And Audrey Koltun, registered dietitian at Cohen Children's Medical Center in Lake Success, New York, says eggs are loaded with nutrients.
"They have many essential vitamins and minerals as well as very high-quality protein," Koltun said. "The egg white contains most of the protein; the yolk contains iron, phosphorus, fat-soluble vitamins including vitamin D, B vitamins, healthy fat, and other valuable nutrients."