That’s right health nuts! This wonder food is no longer a dangerous cholesterol raising, heart attack in the making. In fact, as it turns out, it is pretty much the opposite! There are a few things you need to know in order to unlearn all those preconceived fables. First is that not all cholesterol is bad. For all of you who hate the technical jargon usually crammed into medical articles, I’ll dumb it down for you…dietary cholesterol = good, while blood cholesterol (specifically LDL) = bad. I’m not going to get any more in depth than that on the subject because it just doesn’t matter (unless of course you contact me and beg for more answers). What matters is that eggs fall into the dietary cholesterol category, i.e. GOOD!
When to pull out that secret weapon
How’s this for an answer…every day! I personally like to start my day with a triple egg & cheese burrito. And if you want to get an exceptional start to your day, add a little spinach (an article on greens is on the way, but until then I’ll just say…the spinach-egg combo is a two’fer when it comes to eye health).
If you can’t get eggs into your diet early in the day, don’t worry. Just because the majority of us think of eggs as a breakfast food doesn’t mean you have to lose out on the benefits if you consume eggs at lunch, dinner, or in between. Hard boiled eggs make an excellent snack. If you’re a mid-afternoon muncher, another favorite of TTH (which might not sound too enticing since sometimes I think fuel before flavor), is to cut up those hard boiled eggs and mix with tuna…talk about your ultra-protein snack (inside that shell happens to be over 11% of your daily protein)! Although I did not include this miracle food in the article Healthy Snacking Habits, it easily makes the cut as one of the most overlooked healthy options for active individuals. Not only does it tip the protein scales at nearly 6 grams, but it is also CHEAP! Think about all those protein powder mixes you have been purchasing, trying to build muscle. By my calculations, my egg-spenditures are about $8/month. Compare that to your two week supply of powder for $40 (or $80/month). Now I’ve never claimed to be a financial wizard, but 10X the expense?…No thanks! Although some suggest one to two eggs daily for optimal benefits, TTH believes the appropriate number is three because, well, that’s the number that best fits in the tortilla! Really it’s up to you, your body size, and your activity level.
Making sense of it all
I’m going to make this short and sweet. Eggs contain all of the necessary ingredients to build a healthy baby (chick)…so why don’t we understand that these essential proteins, fats, and other nutrients can help build (or rebuild) our own bodies as well! As stated above, my objective is not to get scientific and scare you away with all of the science because most of you just want to know the following: can I eat my eggs or not, and what will be the adverse effects of my indulgence? So I will conclude this with a small list of why your newest secret weapon should come in a shell. Eggs are known to:
- Reduce inflammation
- Promote weight loss (ok this applies to breakfast in general, but we’ll keep it on the egg list…if you skip your first meal of the day, you have a significantly higher risk of being overweight)
- Improve your eye health
- Better your cholesterol profile
- Produce healthy nails & hair (thank you sulfur)
As always, the list above does not include every benefit and is supplied simply as a basic guide to why you should be indulging in one of nature’s whole foods.
Skipping the supplements & heading straight to the hen house,
TTH
Tags: cholesterol, eggs, protein