<i>A misunderstood friend — Egg</i>
A recent study estimates that eating eggs is not that dangerous for heart disease. In contrast, physical inactivity and daily lifestyle (like overweight, unhealthy diet and smoking) are most important factors.
Our communities know that 'eggs' are high in cholesterol, and a diet high in cholesterol can contribute to elevated blood cholesterol levels.
The American Heart Association recently acknowledged that as long as you limit dietary cholesterol from other sources, it may be possible to include a daily egg in a healthy diet. The study, which was funded by the 'American Egg Nutrition Center' thinks that the above study might influence health professionals to finally acknowledge decades of research showing that egg consumption is not a significant risk factor for heart disease.
According to Ms. Victoria Taylor, a senior dietician in the British Heart Foundation, 'If you need to reduce your cholesterol level it is more important that you cut down on the amount of saturated fat in your diet from foods like fatty meat, full fat dairy products and cakes, biscuits and pastries. There is cholesterol present in eggs but this does not usually make a great contribution to your level of blood cholesterol'.
While elevated blood cholesterol levels increase the risk of heart disease, only around a third of the cholesterol in the body comes from the diet. Other factors such as physical activity, smoking and being overweight can influence blood fat and cholesterol levels and heart disease risk.
Eating more than three eggs a week is bad for you — is still widespread. Well, if you like eggs but don't want the extra cholesterol, avoid the yellow part and use egg whites. Egg whites contain no cholesterol.
According to some people, if you want to reduce cholesterol in a recipe that calls for eggs, use two egg whites or 1/4 cup cholesterol-free egg substitute in place of one whole egg. In fact, one large egg has about 213 milligrams of cholesterol, all of which is found in the yellow portion or yolk. For a healthy person, dietary cholesterol intake recommendation is less than 300 mg a day. If some one has cardiovascular disease or diabetes or high LDL (or "bad") cholesterol, he/she should limit dietary cholesterol intake to less than 200 mg a day.
For that reason, if you eat an egg on a given day, it is important to limit or avoid other sources of cholesterol for the rest of that day. But what is the best way to prepare eggs? Of course, with no added fat or as little oil as possible. An egg white omelet with lots of vegetables is a great way to make sure you get enough vegetables in a day. Hard boiled is also a convenient way to enjoy the food.
Nevertheless, it is understandable that an egg offers a number of beneficial nutrients. One egg has 13 essential vitamins and minerals and is an excellent source of choline and selenium and a good source of high-quality protein, phosphorus, vitamin B12 and riboflavin.
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