This Easter Monday, let’s give some credit to the egg. Whether you observed Easter, Passover, Nowruz, or Eid, the egg is a symbol of new life. We associate it with spring and all the traditional spring holidays.
Plus, the science has long since proven what our ancestors (and the fox) already knew: the egg is nearly a perfect food. (I will give you all these details in the upcoming June issue of Insiders’ Cures.)
Yet to this very day, ill-informed “experts” advise against eating eggs. These clueless experts say you may be able to “get away with” eating a couple eggs per week. But any more than that amount and you’re just “asking for a heart attack.”
This advice couldn’t be more wrong. And, in a moment, I’ll show you the current science that proves eating eggs will LOWER your heart attack risk. Even if you’re overweight.
But first, let me tell you a great egg story…
When I finally decided to get out of Washington D.C. some years ago, the first and only person I told was my mentor, U.S. Surgeon General C. Everett Koop. At our private, one-on-one breakfast meeting, I saw him order two eggs and a tall glass of whole milk. He told me he ate this fare every morning of his adult life. At that point, he was in his late 70s and still working full-time following a distinguished career as a world expert pediatric surgeon and as U.S. Surgeon General. He said the eggs and milk gave him the energy and nutrition he needed to start the day. Dr. Koop died just last year at the age of 97.
The former Surgeon General knew what many so-called experts still have not figured out. Eggs are not the enemy. They combine high-quality protein, essential fatty acids, and a full array of bioavailable vitamins and minerals. (After all, eggs are packed with everything a growing chick needs to survive and thrive.)
On top of all that, eggs are packaged in a convenient, naturally sterile container. They’re completely portable. And they will keep for months without any “preservatives.” In fact, many farmers know they can keep eggs safely at room temperature until the shell is cracked open. And in many European countries, eggs aren’t refrigerated. They’re even sold at room temperature.
Here’s everything you get in one cooked, hard-boiled egg:
Calories 70
Total fat 5g (8% daily value)
Trans fat Og
Carbohydrate Og (10%)
Protein 6g (12%)
Vitamin A (6%)
Riboflavin (15%)
Iron (4%)
Vitamin B6 (4%)
Folate (6%)
Vitamin B12 (8%)
Calcium (2%)
Zinc (4%)
So–if the worst nutritional advice is to avoid eating eggs, the second worst must be to throw out the yolks and eat only the egg whites. While a perfectly good protein source, egg whites don’t have any of the other essential nutrients present in the yolk.
In fact, a recent study showed just how bad it can be to throw out egg yolks. The study was done on people with metabolic syndrome. Of course, metabolic syndrome is now the leading contributor to Type II diabetes and heart disease.
The study set out to test whether daily egg consumption (together with restricting carbs) in men and women with metabolic syndrome would:
1. Alter blood lipids (blood fats that include cholesterol and triglycerides)
2. Reduce atherosclerosis (hardening of the arteries–the major factor in heart disease, stroke, and peripheral vascular occlusive disease)
3. Improve insulin resistance (the hallmark of Type II diabetes).
The researchers divided the participants into two groups. The first group received three whole eggs per day. The second group received the equivalent amount of yolk-free egg substitute. Both groups followed a moderately carb-restricted diet for 12 weeks.
The results?
Both groups reduced their blood triglycerides. They also reduced their “bad” LDL cholesterol and increased their “good” cholesterol. Plus, blood insulin levels and insulin resistance decreased in both groups.
But there was a key difference…
The whole egg group showed greater improvements than the egg-substitute group. And the improvements in the whole egg group became even greater as time went on during the study.
Eating whole eggs and limiting carbs is a great way to help avoid metabolic syndrome–and the diabetes and heart disease that go with it.
So this week after Easter, enjoy all those leftover, hard-boiled eggs. The “bad” egg is really a “good egg” after all.
Source:
1.”Whole egg consumption improves lipoprotein profiles and insulin sensitivity to a greater extent than yolk-free egg substitute in individuals with metabolic syndrome,” Metabolism 2013 March; 62 (3): 400-10