How Often Is It Healthy To Eat Eggs?

How many times have we heard that eating more than one egg a day is bad? The frequency with which it is healthy to eat eggs has always been very varied and controversial due to the many myths that exist around this food. In this article we clarify all this information for you.

Is it healthy to eat eggs frequently?

In order to know how often it is healthy to eat eggs, we first need to know the composition and properties of this food. The 2015-2020 Dietary Guidelines for Americans indicate that eggs are rich in nutrients and high-quality protein and can be part of healthy diets.

In addition, it provides few calories, about 78 kcal approximately, similar to a banana. The white contains mainly water (88%) and proteins, among which albumin is the most important. In the yolk, 50% is water and the rest is distributed equally between proteins and lipids.

The best dietary protein

The content of essential amino acids and the bioavailability of egg protein make it a high-quality nutrient. In the early stages of life (through the mother’s feeding), it favors the development of the fetus. Its function is equally important in the growth stage in childhood and adolescence.

One of the best known functions of protein is the construction and maintenance of tissues, among others, muscle. For this reason, it is highly appreciated by people with great physical activity. In older people, high-quality protein like egg protein helps counteract age-related muscle loss, helping to maintain mobility, physical activity, and quality of life.

Due to its nutritional composition, the egg is a food with a great satiating capacity, a quality of special interest for those who want to lose weight. The feeling of hunger takes longer to arrive when you have, for example, an egg for breakfast. It tends to “sting” less between meals. This is due to the protein content itself, as stated in an article published in the magazine “Appetite”.

• In this case it is advisable to take the eggs prepared without fat, or with the least amount of added fat, for example, grilled or cooked.

Egg fats

All the fats in the egg are in the yolk. Eggs are one of the foods of animal origin with the least saturated fat and the best ratio between unsaturated and saturated fatty acids.

In addition, it is rich in oleic acid (characteristic of olive oil), which today is highly valued because it exerts a beneficial action on blood vessels, reducing the risk of cardiovascular and liver diseases.

As if that were not enough, this food is the best source of choline, an essential nutrient for the development and normal functioning of the body. We don’t normally synthesize enough choline, so we have to get it from food.

Essential vitamins and minerals

An egg provides significant amounts of a wide range of vitamins such as A, B2, Biotin, B12, D and E. It is also a source of minerals such as phosphorus, selenium, iron, iodine and zinc. All of these contribute to meeting a large part of the daily nutrient needs.

Lutein and zeaxanthin

They are pigments of the carotenoid family found in green vegetables and in egg yolks. They act as antioxidants that are deposited in the eye and have been shown to protect and prevent cataracts.

A study published in The Journal of Nutrition revealed that eating six eggs a week for 12 weeks increases blood levels of zeanxanthin and improves the optical density of the macular pigment.

Egg, cholesterol and cardiovascular risk

In the last decades of the last century it was recommended to limit the consumption of eggs due to their high cholesterol content as a cardiovascular prevention measure. In 1973, the American Heart Association recommended limiting egg intake to a maximum of 3 per week.

However, the effect that dietary cholesterol exerts on plasma cholesterol levels in healthy people is minimal and depends largely on individual factors such as genetics, body weight or lifestyle. To date, it has been shown that there is not as direct a relationship as was suspected, according to a study published in the journal “Nutrients”.

Therefore, the false belief that the ingestion of eggs could increase cardiovascular risk due to its effect on cholesterol levels no longer has scientific support after the results of numerous studies.

Eating an egg a day does not affect the blood lipid profile or increase the risk of cardiovascular disease.

So how often is it healthy to eat eggs?

It has become more than clear that the egg is a very complete food that gives us many benefits. Therefore, do not be afraid to eat an egg daily, always accompanying it with a healthy and varied diet.

Also remember to do physical exercise frequently to improve various aspects related to health, such as the lipid profile.