Eggs are a wonderfully versatile food, are they not? From their essential role in several baked goods to the amount of protein you get from them in a hearty breakfast, they really can do a lot. Here are 4 reasons you should add eggs to your diet via Healthline Magazine:
1. Incredibly Nutritious
Eggs are among the most nutritious foods on the planet.
A whole egg contains all the nutrients required to turn a single cell into a baby chicken.
A single large boiled egg contains (1):
- Vitamin A: 6% of the RDA
- Folate: 5% of the RDA
- Vitamin B5: 7% of the RDA
- Vitamin B12: 9% of the RDA
- Vitamin B2: 15% of the RDA
- Phosphorus: 9% of the RDA
- Selenium: 22% of the RDA
- Eggs also contain decent amounts of vitamin D, vitamin E, vitamin K, vitamin B6, calcium and zinc
This comes with 77 calories, 6 grams of protein and 5 grams of healthy fats.
Eggs also contain various trace nutrients that are important for health.
In fact, eggs are pretty much the perfect food. They contain a little bit of almost every nutrient you need.
If you can get your hands on pastured or omega-3 enriched eggs, these are even better. They contain higher amounts of omega-3 fat and are much higher in vitamin A and E (2, 3).
2. High in Cholesterol, but Don’t Adversely Affect Blood Cholesterol
It is true that eggs are high in cholesterol.
In fact, a single egg contains 212 mg, which is over half of the recommended daily intake of 300 mg.
However, it’s important to keep in mind that cholesterol in the diet doesn’t necessarily raise cholesterol in the blood (4, 5).
The liver actually produces large amounts of cholesterol every single day. When you increase your intake of dietary cholesterol, your liver simply produces less cholesterol to even it out (6, 7).
Nevertheless, the response to eating eggs varies between individuals (8):
- In 70% of people, eggs don’t raise cholesterol at all
- In the other 30% (termed “hyper responders”), eggs can mildly raise total and LDL cholesterol
However, people with genetic disorders like familial hypercholesterolemia or a gene variant called ApoE4 may want to limit or avoid eggs.
3. Raise HDL (The “Good”) Cholesterol
HDL stands for high-density lipoprotein. It is often known as the “good” cholesterol (9).
People who have higher levels of HDL usually have a lower risk of heart disease, stroke and other health problems (10, 11, 12, 13).
Eating eggs is a great way to increase HDL. In one study, eating two eggs per day for six weeks increased HDL levels by 10% (14, 15, 16).
4. High in Quality Protein, With All the Essential Amino Acids in the Right Ratios
Proteins are the main building blocks of the human body.
They’re used to make all sorts of tissues and molecules that serve both structural and functional purposes.
Getting enough protein in the diet is very important and studies show that currently recommended amounts may be too low.
Eggs are an excellent source of protein, with a single large egg containing six grams of it.
Eggs also contain all the essential amino acids in the right ratios, so your body is well-equipped to make full use of the protein in them.
Eating enough protein can help with weight loss, increase muscle mass, lower blood pressure and optimize bone health, to name a few (36, 37, 38, 39).
See the full article plus more benefits here.
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