- Data from the Framingham Study, the largest ongoing
medical study, revealed no relationship between choles-
terol consumption and blood levels in 16,000 participants
tracked over the course of six years. - The fat in egg yolks is nearly a perfect balance, contain-
ing mostly monounsaturated fats, and about 36 percent
saturated fat. Monounsaturated fat has been shown to
raise HDL cholesterol levels. Studies published in the
New England Journal of Medicineand the Journal of Internal
Medicineindicate that eating whole eggs daily significant-
ly raised the good HDL cholesterol. - Egg yolks contain linoleic and linolenic acids, which are
as important as all other vitamins and minerals, and are
crucial in the regulation of cholesterol. The study also
showed that without these fats in your diet, your risk for
heart disease is increased. - Egg yolks are high in lecithin, which assists the action of
bile from the gall bladder in regulating cholesterol.
Cholesterase, an important enzyme in egg yolks, may
also help control cholesterol.
With all this scientific evidence, there seems to be little logical rea-
son to avoid eating eggs. But if that’s not enough for you, consider the
clinical case of the “Egg Man.” As reported in the New England Journal
of Medicine, and on popular talk shows a few years ago, an 88-year-old
man with a documented history of eating 25 eggs per day was evalu-
ated and found to be in excellent health, including normal weight and
no signs, symptoms or history of heart disease, stroke or gall bladder
problems. His serum cholesterol over the years has ranged from 150
to 200, despite the fact that he eats about 5,000 mg of cholesterol per
day! He is an example of the fact that increasing cholesterol intake,
even by significant amounts, may not affect serum cholesterol levels.
And, he’s one of the few people I’ve heard of who eats more eggs a
day than I do!
Will egg phobia end soon? More people are realizing that eating
eggs doesn’t raise their cholesterol, and that consuming too many car-
bohydrates and trans fats can be much more of a risk factor for heart
320 • IN FITNESS AND IN HEALTH