Posted on 03/24/2025 4:23:12 AM PDT by Red Badger
Recent research suggests that eating fortified eggs regularly does not negatively impact cholesterol levels or heart health in high-risk individuals, challenging previous beliefs about the risks of egg consumption.
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Subgroup analyses suggest a potential advantage for older adults and individuals with diabetes. Whether you like your eggs sunny-side up, hard boiled or scrambled, many hesitate to eat them amid concerns that eggs may raise cholesterol levels and be bad for heart health. However, results from a prospective, controlled trial presented at the American College of Cardiology’s Annual Scientific Session show that over a four-month period cholesterol levels were similar among people who ate fortified eggs most days of the week compared with those who didn’t eat eggs.
A total of 140 patients with or at high risk for cardiovascular disease were enrolled in the PROSPERITY trial, which aimed to assess the effects of eating 12 or more fortified eggs a week versus a non-egg diet (consuming less than two eggs a week) on HDL- and LDL-cholesterol, as well as other key markers of cardiovascular health over a four-month study period.
Insights from the Research Team
“We know that cardiovascular disease is, to some extent, mediated through risk factors like high blood pressure, high cholesterol and increased BMI and diabetes. Dietary patterns and habits can have a notable influence on these and there’s been a lot of conflicting information about whether or not eggs are safe to eat, especially for people who have or are at risk for heart disease,” said Nina Nouhravesh, MD, a research fellow at the Duke Clinical Research Institute in Durham, North Carolina, and the study’s lead author. “This is a small study, but it gives us reassurance that eating fortified eggs is OK with regard to lipid effects over four months, even among a more high-risk population.”
Eggs are a common and relatively inexpensive source of protein and dietary cholesterol. Nouhravesh and her team wanted to look specifically at fortified eggs as they contain less saturated fat and additional vitamins and minerals, such as iodine, vitamin D, selenium, vitamin B2, 5 and 12, and omega-3 fatty acids.
For this study, patients were randomly assigned to eat 12 fortified eggs a week (cooked in whatever manner they chose) or to eat fewer than two eggs of any kind (fortified or not) per week. All patients were 50 years of age or older (the average age was 66 years), half were female and 27% were Black. All patients had experienced one prior cardiovascular event or had two cardiovascular risk factors, such as high blood pressure, high cholesterol, increased BMI or diabetes. The co-primary endpoint was LDL and HDL cholesterol at four months. Secondary endpoints included lipid, cardiometabolic, and inflammatory biomarkers and levels of vitamins and minerals.
Monitoring and Results
Patients had in-person clinic visits at the start of the study and visits at one and four months to take vital signs and have bloodwork done. Phone check-ins occurred at two and three months and patients in the fortified egg group were asked about their weekly egg consumption. Those with low adherence were provided with additional education materials.
Results showed a -0.64 mg/dL and a -3.14 mg/dL reduction in HDL-cholesterol (“good” cholesterol) and LDL cholesterol (“bad” cholesterol), respectively, in the fortified egg group. While these differences weren’t statistically significant, the researchers said the differences suggest that eating 12 fortified eggs each week had no adverse effect on blood cholesterol. In terms of secondary endpoints, researchers observed a numerical reduction in total cholesterol, LDL particle number, another lipid biomarker called apoB, high-sensitivity troponin (a marker of heart damage), and insulin resistance scores in the fortified egg group, while vitamin B increased.
“While this is a neutral study, we did not observe adverse effects on biomarkers of cardiovascular health and there were signals of potential benefits of eating fortified eggs that warrant further investigation in larger studies as they are more hypothesis-generating here,” Nouhravesh said, explaining that subgroup analyses revealed numerical increases in HDL cholesterol and reductions in LDL cholesterol in patients 65 years or older and those with diabetes in the fortified egg group compared with those eating fewer than two eggs.
So why have eggs gotten a bad rap? Some of the confusion stems from the fact that egg yolks contain cholesterol. Experts said a more important consideration, especially in the context of these findings, might be what people are eating alongside their eggs, such as buttered toast, bacon, and other processed meats, which are not heart-healthy choices. As always, Nouhravesh said it’s a good idea for people with heart disease to talk with their doctor about a heart-healthy diet.
This single-center study is limited by its small size and reliance on patients’ self-reporting of their egg consumption and other dietary patterns. It was also an unblinded study, which means patients knew what study group they were in, which can influence their health behaviors.
Meeting: American College of Cardiology’s Annual Scientific Session
The study was funded by Eggland’s Best.
Bacon and Egg Casserole - uses up 18 eggs at a time! That’ll take care of Monday and Tuesday, LOL!
https://www.tasteofhome.com/recipes/bacon-and-eggs-casserole/#RecipeCard
Eggs CAN be a superfood, here’s the caveat:
They must be eggs from hens NOT fed soy or corn meal. The hens must be foragers, fed kitchen scraps, flaxseeds, soy and corn free meal, etc. Omega 3 must be boosted and abundant in their eggs. That’s what gives good eggs the beautiful yolk colors.
Corn and especially soy feedings make eggs with too much Omega 6 which causes inflammation and disease in the human body.
That’s the simple explanation. Do some research for more information.
Do what your Grandma told you to do.
Not too much sugar or desert
sunshine and clean water.
Wash your hands.
Don’t pick your nose.
And don’t bring “those” girls home.
The eggs my wife has been purchasing lately have green shells and day-glow orange yolks.
Another reason not to listen to gov funded experts.
I get eggs from a local farmer. They only come with a sell by date. Best eggs I’ve ever had. I get *fortifications* in other ways, like a daily vitamin or supplement.
And who said cholesterol was bad? Plaque in the arteries is bad. Blood clots (the most common cause of heart attacks and stroke) are bad. But you have to have cholesterol to live.
Ican understand the sugar part but if one lives in a dry arid part of the state, how is that harmful?
Four eggs a day.
In BUTTER.
With harissa.
Eggs are good for you. Eggs are bad for you. Eggs are good for you. Wait until next week. Have some egg mixture leftover from french toast yesterday so good or bad it is going to be used up today in chicken patties. The cooking oil is much worse than any egg.
The average person‘s liver produces 4 to 5 times as much cholesterol on its own as we consume. If you have a fairly long period of time, like the four months in this study, the body will adjust to a higher level of consumption and reduce its own production of cholesterol.
Anyway, cholesterol is not the problem. That’s like saying the presence of fireman on a street where one of the houses burned down is the cause of the fire. Cholesterol is part of the natural Band-Aid that the body produces when arteries are inflamed and damaged. The inflammation and damage comes from too much sugar and carbohydrates in the diet, which our bodies are not set up to deal with well over a long period of time. If you reduce significantly the amount of inflammation by eating appropriately, there will be no need for cholesterol to form part of the plaque that ends up blocking arteries after enough time. You’ll still have some plaque, but for most people not enough to block arteries, at least not until a relatively old age.
My grandmother would have a little bit of tea with her sugar. She and grandpa both ate fresh from the nest turkey eggs and lived to their 90s. I’m still using her skillet and spatula to fry eggs but don’t fill her glasses quite as full of sugar. Love and miss them terribly.
I buy eggs from a local farmer for $5 a dozen.
Duck eggs for $8.
During the winter they ran out because the hens don’t lay as much.
I bought a dozen Free range eggs at the grocery store.
When I cooked one of each in a pan I noticed the difference in the color of the yoke.
The grocery store egg yoke was a pale translucent yellow. The farmer yoke was dark yellow almost orange.
I showed them to the Mrs and asked which one do you think is better for you.
Of course, she picked the darker farmer egg.
FYI, the farmer eggs are not washed.
They have a sticker on the package that says they are good for another three months when I buy them.
It makes me wonder how old they are when you buy them at the grocery store?
Welcome to those of us who know our entire life we were lied to, even by our Church.
“My doctor told me eggs are not the problem (I’ve had a quad bypass), bread is the problem. That’s where your cholesterol comes from..............”
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Agreed. It is carbohydrates, which all turn into sugars in our bloodstream, which causes the inflammation and damage to the endothelium that requires plaque to repair. It’s not even the plaque that causes heart attacks and strokes, it is when the plaque has so narrow the arteries that a blood clot (usually from soft plaque that has burst) can block the artery in question. Cholesterol doesn’t cause heart attacks anymore than firemen cause fires. Both are present in order to deal with the problem, but the pharmaceutical and food industries want everyone to believe that high cholesterol causes heart attacks so that we buy their products.
Duh! 🙄
Said another way, the corn/grain/ADM lobby is bad for MAHA.
Just like they’re bad for gasoline, causing it to be polluted with ethanol as they do.
These eggs (that I posted) do, too!
The scrambled eggs are orange yellow.
DELISH!!
Agreed.
I guess I’m doomed. I love my carbs in all forms.
Bread, pasta, potatoes, rice, crackers, grits, polenta, chips, cake, cookies….
Oddly, I’m not overweight and blood work pretty good for a man my age. 🤔
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