If you are health conscious and like to eat eggs you may be wondering if chicken eggs are healthy for you. In this post I discuss this common question and also talk about whether eggs raise blood cholesterol or not. Lastly, I provide ideas on how to incorporate eggs into your diet in a healthy way.
Why Eggs Get a bad Reputation
Egg yolks contain cholesterol and this has been the source of many questions regarding whether eggs are healthy or not. The American Heart Association recommends that individuals without heart disease limit dietary cholesterol to 300 mg per day. If you do have heart disease, it is recommended that you limit dietary cholesterol to 200 mg per day.
One large chicken egg has about 190 mg of cholesterol. You can see how eating one egg brings you close to your daily limit pretty quickly. Consider too that we may consume several other foods in a day that have dietary cholesterol. Additionally, many people eat two or more eggs at a time when they are the main source of protein at their meal.
The Truth About High Blood Cholesterol
When you go to your doctor and they order a lipid panel blood test, one thing they look at is your total cholesterol. Total blood cholesterol is the amount of LDL and HDL cholesterol added together.
Your LDL and HDL cholesterol are also measured separately. High levels of LDL cholesterol is a risk factor for developing heart disease because it can build up in your blood vessels and cause both narrowing and blockages. HDL cholesterol is considered a healthy cholesterol as it actually helps to remove cholesterol from your blood vessels.
Dietary Cholesterol is Not the Main Culprit
Dietary cholesterol is the cholesterol we eat in our foods. It may seem intuitive to think that dietary cholesterol is what causes our blood cholesterol to go up. It is not however the main cause of high blood cholesterol for most people.
With that being said, there is a smaller population (15-25% of the population) whose blood cholesterol does increase when they eat foods with dietary cholesterol.1 These individuals are called hyper-responders, and they do need to be careful about dietary cholesterol intake. For the majority of people however, dietary cholesterol is not the main culprit of high blood cholesterol.
Saturated Fats
For most people, saturated fats are the main cause of high blood cholesterol. These fats are found in animal products such as meats and full fat dairy products, and also tropical oils such as coconut oil and palm oil.
Based on the Dietary Guidelines for Americans it is recommended that saturated fats be limited to 10% of your daily calories.2 The American Heart Association recommends limiting saturated fats to 5-6% of your daily calories. If you eat about 1,800 calories per day, this would be 20 gm of saturated fats if you follow the 10% guideline, or 10 gm if you follow the 5% guideline. You would be surprised at how quickly saturated fats add up. If you have high LDL cholesterol, try tracking your saturated fat intake for one or two days. It will be very helpful to see the foods that may be contributing to your high blood cholesterol.
Trans Fats
The other type of fat that contributes greatly to high blood cholesterol is trans fats. Another name for this fat is hydrogenated oils. It is recommended to completely avoid these fats when possible, as they not only raise LDL cholesterol, but they also lower HDL. Remember, HDL cholesterol actually helps remove cholesterol from your blood.
Foods that have trans fats include many pre packaged foods and foods that are fried or made with shortening. Some foods, specifically meats and dairy products, have some naturally occurring trans fats. But the foods that have trans fats added to them are the ones we need to be most diligent about avoiding.
To read more about heart healthy eating, check out my other article, Heart Healthy Eating.
Egg Nutrition
Chicken eggs offer so much good nutrition. The egg whites contain protein and B vitamins including riboflavin. The yolks contains calcium, choline, the fat soluble vitamins including vitamin D, B vitamins including B12 and folate, and antioxidants such as lutein and zeaxanthin.
Eggs are a power house of nutrition. To see a chart of what nutrients eggs offer, read this article. It also shows which part of the egg offers which nutrients.
Since eggs provide so much good nutrition, and because dietary cholesterol does not increase blood cholesterol for most people, they can truly be a healthy part of our diet! In fact, the American Heart Association’s stance on eggs is that if you are generally eating a healthy, well balanced diet, eating eggs can be a healthy part of your diet.
For those that are hyper-responders to dietary cholesterol, one whole egg a day would fit in well with the 200 mg cholesterol limit. You would be able to add additional egg whites to add more protein to your meal if desired. You will also need to be mindful of dietary cholesterol that is in the other foods you eat.
How to Cook Eggs in a Healthy Way
They way you cook and prepare eggs can make a difference in how healthy they are. Let’s take a look at some healthy ways to incorporate eggs into your diet.
Skip Breakfast Meats
Eggs are a source of protein; one large egg has 6 gm of protein. While breakfast meats can add protein, they also add unnecessary saturated fats, dietary cholesterol and sodium. In my mind, meat is more of an “extra” at breakfast. Of course, I enjoy bacon and breakfast sausage myself, but I choose to eat them on occasion, instead of regularly. Making breakfast meats an occasional food may be the best way to include them in your diet.
Add Vegetables
Adding vegetables not only bulks up your eggs and makes them more satisfying, but they can also add a lot of flavor and beneficial nutrition. Using a variety of vegetables also helps keep eggs interesting. I tend to make my omelets the same way every morning. After participating in the challenge I created (see below), I plan on using different veggies more often.
Choose Your Cooking Fat Wisely
The type of fat you cook your eggs with can make a difference. If you use butter you will be adding more cholesterol and saturated fat to your meal. If you use vegetable oils such as olive oil, avocado oil or canola oil, you add more heart healthy unsaturated fats and reduce your saturated fat intake.
It is also wise to be mindful of how much cooking fat you use. One teaspoon is really all you need to oil your pan.
Using a small amount of butter to cook your eggs in the morning may not seem like a big deal, but it is the small behaviors over time that can add up and make a difference. Choosing more heart healthy oils throughout the day and on a daily basis can make a difference in your blood cholesterol levels.
Opt for Healthier Cheese
Cheese is my favorite way to add flavor to my eggs. As cheese is an animal product, it is a source of saturated fat and cholesterol. However, you can opt to use cheese that has less of these fats. In general, white cheeses have less saturated fat and cholesterol when compared to yellow cheeses. But even then, some white cheeses are healthier than others. For example, mozzarella cheese, provolone or feta cheese have less saturated fats compared to several other common cheese options. You can also opt to use reduced fat cheeses in place of those made with regular full fat milk.
Season Without Adding Salt
If you have high blood pressure or have other health reasons that require you to limit sodium in your diet, avoid flavoring your eggs with salt. There are many other ways to add flavor to eggs without using salt. If you are like me and you love adding cheese to your eggs, keep in mind that cheese is a source of sodium too.
If you are adding vegetables as mentioned above, these add a lot of interesting flavor and texture to eggs. Consider using spices such as black pepper, garlic or onion powder, or dried red pepper flakes. Herbs are another great way to add flavor to eggs. You can use dried or fresh, but fresh herbs always provide a more interesting pop of flavor.
My Challenge for You
Based on what you currently do when you cook eggs, choose one of the challenges below:
- If you do not currently make your eggs with veggies, I challenge you to try adding vegetables to your egg dishes
- If you typically eat breakfast meats with your eggs, I challenge you to replace those meats with veggies
- If you already add vegetables to your eggs, I challenge you to try different vegetables than you normally eat with your eggs
I participated in this challenge myself. I typically eat my eggs with sauteed spinach (and sometimes sauteed onions), and I put mozzarella cheese inside. Since I typically eat my eggs with veggies already, I tried cooking with different vegetables and using a different cheese than I usually use. I sauteed asparagus and shallot, and I added freshly grated gruyere style goat cheese to my omelet. I really enjoyed the crunchy asparagus, the sweet flavor of the shallot and the burst of flavor from the goat cheese.
If you participate in this challenge, let me know! Tell me which challenge you chose to do and if you like how your eggs turned out.
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