We’re seeing more and more research showing that eggs are ok and can be part of a healthy diet. It’s about time! Myself and my fellow nutritionists/integrative doctors have been saying this for years. I even say “yes, you can eat the yolk” on the back of my business card.
Here is some of the recent research:
An article on Webmd, Egg-Rich Diet Not Harmful in Type 2 Diabetes discusses the results of a new study to be published later this month. The findings were presented at the European Association for the Study of Diabetes 2014 Meeting last month by Nicholas Fuller, PhD, from the Boden Institute Clinical Trials Unit, University of Sydney, Australia
The findings suggest that eating two eggs per day, 6 days a week can be a safe part of a healthy diet for people with type 2 (that’s 12 eggs a week – yeah!)
Eggs don’t have a bad effect on cholesterol levels in people with type 2 diabetes.
…those in the high-egg group showed a trend toward HDL improvement
Researchers also found that eating an egg-rich diet for 3 months was linked to better appetite control, and may also provide a greater sense of feeling full.
The high-egg group also reported more enjoyment of foods, less boredom, and more satisfaction with the diet (I really like this finding!)
A paper published last month in the British Journal of Nutrition : “Cholesterol and egg intakes and the risk of type 2 diabetes: The Japan Public Health Center-based Prospective Study“ found that:
higher intake of cholesterol or eggs may not be associated with an increased risk of type 2 diabetes in Japanese populations
This interesting animal study “Orally administered whole egg demonstrates antidepressant-like effects in the forced swimming test on rats” published in August:
demonstrated that whole-egg treatment exerts an antidepressant-like effect
It is suggested that whole egg may be an excellent food for preventing and alleviating the conditions of major depression
Skipping breakfast can increase depression, anxiety and stress levels and eggs can be part of a healthy breakfast. This May 2014 paper “A cross-sectional investigation of depressive, anxiety, and stress symptoms and health-behavior participation in Australian university students” found that:
For males, depressive symptoms were associated with skipping breakfast and poor sleep quality.
For females, depressive symptoms were associated with skipping breakfast, inadequate vigorous physical activity, and short or long sleep hours.
You don’t want to skip breakfast – ever! Low blood sugar can result in anxiety, mood swings, irritability and feeling easily overwhelmed, so it’s really important to get a good start to the day with good quality protein like eggs. Here is a simply yet delicious Egg Muffin recipe from Make It Paleo: Over 200 Grain-Free Recipes for Any Occasion.
We’re going to be talking more about the health and mood benefits of eggs (and animal protein) during season 2 of The Anxiety Summit. It runs from Nov 3-16 and you’ll learn about this and many other nutritional and natural solutions for anxiety, panic attacks, OCD and social anxiety. We’ll cover the research and practical solutions too.