Eggs – How Many Should We Be Eating?

DESPITE forming a significant part of the human diet for thousands of years, eggs have fallen out of favour more recently following a number of health scares. So what's the bottom line? Are eggs good for us or harmful? And if they're ok, how often should we be eating them?

Aren't they really high in cholesterol?

Eggs started to get a bad press in the 1950s, when fears about their cholesterol content prompted people to stop eating them. This escalated in the 1970s and 1980s and I'm still frequently asked about it. The trouble is, not only is the link between heart disease and cholesterol not as clear-cut as it originally seemed, but recent research has also shown that the cholesterol content of foods that we eat has little bearing on the levels of cholesterol in our bodies

In fact, we manufacture cholesterol in our livers because we need it to make steroid hormones such as stress hormones and reproductive hormones and it's also the pre-cursor to vitamin D, which we make from the action of sunlight on the skin. Very high levels of cholesterol have been associated with a greater risk of heart disease but the dietary factors that influence it the most are saturated fats and, to an even greater extent, 'trans' fats (from margarines and processed foods).

What about the risk of salmonella?

Lion Mark EggEdwina Currie further put the boot into eggs in 1988 when, in her role as Health Minister, she declared that most of Britain's egg production is infected with salmonella - a bacteria that causes food poisoning. Since then, however, UK egg producers have worked hard to reduce the risk of salmonella in British eggs and implemented a scheme, called the Lion Mark scheme, which requires all laying hens whose eggs carry the Lion Mark stamp to have been vaccinated against salmonella. The Food Standards Agency now says that there is a very low incidence of salmonella in UK eggs. To further reduce the risk of food poisoning, keep eggs refrigerated and follow official advice on handling and cooking eggs (see the NHS Choices website).

But aren't they really high in fat?

Aficionados of low fat diets promote the consumption of egg-white omelettes (how joyless does that sound?) over the more traditional variety. However, the reality is that, not only do we need some fat in our everyday diets (even when trying to lose weight) but most of the fat in eggs is monounsaturated, which has been linked to a lower risk of heart disease. See also my comments on cholesterol, above.

Is there any nutritional difference between battery produced, free range and organic eggs?

Or is an egg an egg? Well, not unsurprisingly, the better the conditions in which the chicken that lays the egg is reared, the better the nutritional content of the egg, particularly the fat ratio. The quality of an egg is directly affected by the feed the chicken eats and how much space the bird has to wander around in: hens fed on insects and greens produce eggs with a higher omega 3 content. You can also buy 'omega eggs' which are produced by chickens fed a diet high in sources of omega 3 fats. If you can afford them, organic eggs are the best, particularly those with a Soil Association certification.

What's really good about eggs?

Eggs are versatile and great for rustling up a quick meal. The healthiest ways to eat them are boiled, poached, scrambled or in an omelette and, apart from the lack of variety, there is no reason not to eat them every day! They are a good source of protein and contain all the essential amino acids that we use to make new proteins in the body. As well as ‘good’ fats, discussed above, they also contain something called choline, which helps to process fat and cholesterol and is important for nerve transmission and brain health. Egg yolks also contain B vitamins, vitamin A, and are one of the few dietary sources of vitamin D. Mineral content includes zinc, selenium, iodine and iron.