Eggs are considered to be a highly nutritious food, and an excellent source of protein. If you are already a client at Ideal Weight Management, you know that egg whites are considered to be a “free food” due to their high protein content. But you may wonder why whole eggs are not allowed to be consumed on an desired basis. While a single egg has as much as 6 grams of protein, it also has about 5 grams of fat. And although it is a VERY healthy fat, it is still fat which may slow down your weight loss process. That aside, let’s look at what an egg does offer, and why it should be an essential part of your dietary program.

The Hen House

“It’s not just what we eat that matters, it’s also what our food eats.” 1

W​hen selecting an egg at the grocery store, there are a few things to consider, namely, where did the egg come from. Studies show that eggs produced by pasture raised chickens have up to 5​times​ more Omega­3 rich fatty acids, which are highly beneficial to our health.2 Even more abundant in these Omega­3’s, are eggs that come from chickens that are raised with feed that has been supplemented with Omega 3 sources such as flax seed.

Also important when choosing your “incredible, edible, egg,”3 is the environment that the chickens were raised in. There are essentially 3 groups of chicken sourced eggs: Pasture/Free­range, Organic, and Conventional.

• ●  Pasture raised chickens=​are allowed to roam free in their natural environment, and rely on plants, insects, and occasionally commercial feed.
• ●  Organic chickens=​receive organic food which is both hormone and antibiotic free. May or may not be given access to the outdoors or raised in a cage­free environment.
• ●  Conventional chickens=​mass produced, raised in hen houses with little to no access to sunlight or the outdoors. (Your standard supermarket egg)(Within these 3 groups is also the distinction of whether they are given the Omega 3 enriched feed.)1 K​ris Gunnars, A​uthority Nutrition.
  2 http://authoritynutrition.com/pastured­vs­omega­3­vs­conventional­eggs/ 3 http://www.incredibleegg.org/health­and­nutrition/egg­nutrients

Nutritional Content

Recently, the American Heart Association made news when it announced less stringent guidelines on cholesterol, specifically consumption of eggs. Prior to that, those with a history of high­cholesterol or heart disease were educated to not consume whole eggs due to their cholesterol content. Recent USDA guidelines lowered the amount of cholesterol that was thought to be in an egg from 215 mg to 185 mg, a 14% drop!4  Good news for egg lovers everywhere.  Also mentioned was that the t​ype o​f cholesterol that is found in eggs is that which is high in Omega 3 fatty acids.  These fats are essential to health, and actually help to raise high­density lipoproteins (HDL), the type of cholesterol that is important to cell membrane health and other body mechanisms. The USDA also reported that eggs have far more V​itamin D ​than previously thought, as much as 64% more.5 In addition, they contain high amounts of ​Choline, ​which is a B vitamin that helps build cell membranes and assist with brain molecules, and generous amounts of L​utein a​nd Z​eaxanthin w​hich help prevent Macular Degeneration and assist with eye health.

Now that you know how amazing eggs are, make sure they are at the top of your grocery list this week!

4h​ttp://www.cnpp.usda.gov/Publications/DietaryGuidelines/2010/PolicyDoc/PolicyDoc.pdf 5 http://authoritynutrition.com/10­proven­health­benefits­of­eggs/