Cock-A-Doodle-Doo!
In the ’80s, the fitness craze brought the egg white to the forefront of healthy diets nationwide – leaving in its wake, the center of its
nucleus, the yolk.
Known to be high in cholesterol, eating the yolk of an egg was known to be as risky of a behavior as “partying” at Studio 54.
However, new research done by the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) reports that a large egg “now” has about 185 milligrams of
cholesterol. That’s down from 215 milligrams over the last 10 years.
Yes my chick-a-dees, our fine feathered friends are producing a better quality egg due to improvements in their diet, as
well as, the way they are bread and kept. Yup, it seems that “cage-free” chickens, in other words, those who “exercise,” deliver a
product that contains less cholesterol than those who remain confined, aka sedentary. “Ya don’t say?”
Also, further studies show that eating one egg a day does not result in increased blood cholesterol levels; nor does it increase the risk
of cardiovascular disease in healthy people. However, the research does show that it is saturated fat which raises cholesterol, not dietary cholesterol. In fact, some studies even suggest that regular consumption of two eggs per day may actually improve a person’s lipid profile. Such benefits as a reduction in the risk of developing breast cancer, and an increase in the health of hair and nails have been seen.
Today’s USDA guidelines recommend that “healthy” people eat less than 300 milligrams, and those “at risk” eat less than 200 milligrams of
cholesterol a day.
FYI, a whole egg is only 70 calories and has six grams of protein (containing all nine essential amino acids – important for muscle
development) and only 1.6 grams of saturated fat. And, thanks to the yolk (where most of the nutrients are stored), the egg is high in
calcium and one of the only foods that contain Vitamin D (41 IUs) which is good for bone health. It is also high in vitamin B 12 which
reduces depression, aids in digestion and helps turn carbohydrates into blood glucose – which leads to having more energy.
So what does this all mean? Basically, in order to get the full benefit of the “incredible edible”, sometimes the decision is not what part of the egg to eat, but how you want it prepared. Boiled, poached, over easy, scrambled or sunny-side-up provides a lot of nutrition in a variety of ways.
