It drives me nuts when I hear people say that they will only have an egg white omelet or that they throw out the yolk and just eat the whites of the hard-boiled egg. Seriously? x
Compared to egg whites, the yolk actually contains most of the good stuff. Egg yolks contain a number of vitamins including B12, B2, A, and folate. We can supplement with B12, B2, and folate but we can’t supplement with vitamin A which we typically have to get from fish oil. So this is a golden opportunity no pun intended. Egg yolks are also one of the few foods that naturally contain vitamin D which is essential for healthy bones and teeth.
Finally, egg yolks contain many minerals including phosphorus, iodine, and selenium. We usually can only get selenium from fish and Brazil nuts. We need a little bit of selenium on a regular basis and it turns out that egg yolk is a good source.
Although egg whites are usually associated with protein, the yolks actually contain more protein than the whites, gram for gram. The reason they don’t have that reputation is that there’s more whites than yolk in an egg. But the reality is there’s a higher proportion of protein in the yolk than there is in the whites. (Ever wonder why they call them egg whites instead of egg white? ) The average protein content of the yolk is 16.4g per 100g, compared to 10.8g in the egg white per 100g. Just saying…
Egg yolks also contain two nutrients—lutein and zeaxanthin—that support eye and brain health. That’s right, brain health. And if you’re getting up there in years and you hate wearing glasses like I do, it\’s awesome to have a food that supports your vision that is as versatile and delicious as an egg.
We must also discuss the fat in egg yolks. Fats are an essential part of any healthy diet, and egg yolks are a good source of polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats as well as omega-3 fatty acids which have a number of benefits including contributing to the maintenance of normal heart and brain function. Again with the brain.
(See my fat chart to understand what this means in terms of good fats.)
Despite all of this goodness, egg yolks have a bad reputation. I think the reason that most people get confused about eggs is because the yolks are a source of dietary cholesterol. Don’t even get me started on all of the cholesterol misinformation but suffice it to say that cholesterol is not bad for you. It is the oxidized cholesterol that’s bad for you. And what causes oxidized cholesterol? Sugar and hydrogenated fats. Not egg yolks!
Bottom line, in much the same way that the latest research has granted a pardon to healthy fats, dietary cholesterol seems to have been unfairly slandered in the past by the health community and is now getting a second chance.
For starters
“Dietary cholesterol does not translate into high levels of blood cholesterol,” says Dr. Luc Djoussé, an associate professor and heart disease researcher at Harvard Medical School and Brigham and Young Women’s Hospital.1
He goes on to say “Current scientific data do not justify worries about egg consumption, including egg yolk, when it comes to heart health,” he says. Turns out that eating an egg every day isn’t a problem, even if you have cholesterol issues.
There is some research data that higher egg intake may increase the risk of coronary heart disease among those with type 2 diabetes. Here’s my theory about that; type 2 diabetes is driven by a poor diet or a diet high in sugar and hydrogenated fats. It would seem possible that the sugars and hydrogenated fats that are damaging the body’s cholesterol are also damaging the cholesterol from the egg.
So how many eggs can you eat without worrying about it? Most of the studies seem to be saying it is safe to eat one egg per day. I warm up an already hard-boiled egg every other morning in a little bowl of hot water and eat that with my 100% grass-fed beef stick from Paleo valley. It is my favorite breakfast 🙂 I also almost always put a sliced egg on top of my salads. Sometimes I put a sliced egg on top of my homemade pickled beets. Yum!
Research:
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Heid, M. (2016, February 17). Are egg yolks less healthy than egg whites? Time. Retrieved August 2, 2022, from https://time.com/4225819/eggs-nutrition-egg-yolk/
