AN EGG A DAY KEEPS THE DOCTOR AWAY

FOR years we were frightened off eggs, due to fears they raised cholesterol. But research has since proved this to be wrong — most recently in a review of previous studies published in January in the American Journal of Medicine.

This showed that a high consumption of eggs (more than one a day) was not associated with a raised risk of cardiovascular disease, but a significant reduction in risk, instead.

Another major review, published in the British Medical Journal last year, produced similar results.

You may ask: aren’t eggs full of cholesterol? And doesn’t cholesterol lead to blocked arteries? The answer is yes — and no.

Weight for weight, egg yolk contains more cholesterol than in 100g butter, double cream or even pork liver. But the idea that dietary cholesterol causes heart attacks has been quietly dropped.

As the British Heart Foundation explains on its website: ‘The misconceptions around eggs and cholesterol largely stemmed from incorrect conclusions drawn from early research that dietary cholesterol contributed to raised blood cholesterol levels.’ In other words, the cholesterol found naturally in food is not the problem.

I’ve found in my GP practice that there isn’t much of a relationship between the amount of cholesterol you eat and your blood cholesterol levels. Sugar is a more likely culprit, as I’ll explain tomorrow.

We all now agree: eggs can be part of a healthy diet. Perhaps it’s an egg a day keeps the doctor away!