Eggs are more than just cholesterol!
Hen’s eggs have the highest quality dietary protein and are a relatively inexpensive source of protein. A 50 g egg contains about 6g of protein (the ten essential amino acids make up 53% of this protein) and about 5 g of fat of which 200mg is cholesterol and the rest is made up of saturated fatty acids (36%), MUFA (48%) and PUFA (18%). However, eggs also contain significant amounts of calcium, iron, phosphorus, riboflavin, folate, vitamin A, vitamin E and especially vitamin D and B12, plus many other mircronutrients. It is for this reason that eggs (relatively inexpensive) are such a valuable food source for children, the ill, the elderly and those suffering from malnutrition.
In the US and SA it is recommended that the daily intake of cholesterol should not exceed 300mg per day. Removing eggs from the diet for the purpose of lowering cholesterol, should be carefully weighed up against the removal of all these valuable nutrients. If eggs displace other cholesterol containing foods, which more often than not also contain high levels of saturated fatty acids, they will not invariably increase the LDL cholesterol levels. In several uncontrolled egg feeding trials, egg intake was not found to influence serum
cholesterol (Vorster et al 1995).
Eggs enriched with omega-3 fatty acids are now available on the supermarket shelves. This is achieved by feeding hens meals rich in alpha linolenic acid (ALA) or EPA and DHA. Consumption of such eggs, rich in fatty acids of the omega-3 family, are believed to be cardioprotective.
“Dietary cholesterol – the role of eggs in the prudent diet” HH Vorster, AC Beynen, GMB Berger, CS Venter. SAMJ 1995, 85 (4) : 253-256
“Enriched eggs as a source of n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids for humans” NM Lewis, S Seburg and NI Flanagan. Poultry 2000, 79: 971-974
HEALTH INSIGHT
MARCH 2017
