I am wondering if I should be worried about my health from the high amount of cholesterol in eggs. Around twice a week I eat six eggs (1,290mg cholesterol) for breakfast with a tablespoon of chia seeds mixed in with two pieces of whole wheat bread. To give you a little context, my basic nutrition goal each day is:

2,910 calories

218g carbs (30%)

255g protein (35%)

113g fat (35%)

(and 300mg of cholesterol according to Myfitnesspal haha)

Any imput would be great, thanks Nation!

Daniel,

I wrote an article on this several months back. You can search for it under the ARTICLES tab on the SHF.com home page. It is titled "Fat and Cholesterol Are Not The Enemy."

MyFitnessPal and the majority of doctors in the U.S. all believe in the Lipid Hypothesis. This is a flawed theory from the 1950's started by a researcher named Ansel Keyes that correlated high cholesterol and saturated fat with heart disease. It was a correlation based on flawed data. Correlations do not prove anything - hence it is the Lipid Hypothesis not the Lipid Law - but Ansel was well connected politically and he got the U.S government to buy-in to his study and it has been used ever since and has fueled the multi-billion dollar Statin drug industry and the processed food industry who replaced "evil" fat and cholesterol with man-made sugars and man-made fats (tran-fats).

His data was flawed because he had data from 22 countries and he only used the data from the 7 that supported his theory. There are plenty of cultures who eat very high fat and cholesterol diets and they have no heart disease, cancers, or dementia. Ansel chose to ignore this data as it didn't support his theory. His logic that cholesterol and fat cause heart disease would be the same as me saying all fire fighters cause fires because every time there is a fire we see fire fighters at the scene. Observationally it makes sense as we do see fires and fire fighters together. Causality wise we know that fire fighters do not cause fires but rather fight them.

Do not worry about your cholesterol. I eat 7 whole eggs a day and have been doing so for many years. I also eat plenty of good fats like olive oil, coconut oil, fatty fish, nuts and seeds, and egg yolks. The main causitive culprit in heart disease is SUGAR not fat and cholesterol. Sugar is a major irritant and is toxic in high doses to your cardio-vascular system and internal organs. Your body has a dedicated organ, the pancreas, whose sole job is to use insulin to regulate blood sugar levels so you have the right amount for energy without too much that will kill you. This is why diabetics go blind or lose limbs if their blood sugar is not controlled. Glucose destroys your blood vessels in high doses. You can go into insulin shock and die. You don't see cholesterol or fat doing this, do you? Cholesterol is so vital to life your liver produces 70% of what you need. Your body has a feed-back system in that the more cholesterol you get from food the less your liver makes and visa versa. Studies have proven dietary cholesterol intake like from eggs does NOT negatively impact your blood lipids (fats). Cholesterol and fat are also the building blocks for all your hormones (like testosterone and growth hormone) and make up 25% of your brain and your entire nervous system. Ever since the U.S. has followed the Lipid Hypothesis guidelines of low fat and cholesterol, people are fatter, sicker, have more Type 2 diabetes earlier, heart disease, dementia/Alzheimer's, and a host of other maladies. It is no coincidence that these disease states' rise has happened at the same time people started eating more processed foods with too much sugar, salt, and trans-fats and the rise of all the cholesterol lowering drugs.

The bottom line is eat a healthy, nutritious diet devoid of processed foods and man-made fats and sugars, exercise, and get plenty of rest and you can eat eggs and consume good fats without worrying about negative effects on your health :-)

John

Wow thank you very much for taking the time to reply. I learned a lot from your explanation and I will definitely read your article. I am glad to hear from a professional that I am not eating too much cholesterol, opposed to what some of my peers say especially regarding removing the yolk. Thank you very much again, have a blessed day!

Damn @jmboiardi you beat me too it! I had this saved to answer once I go settled in back home haha.

Well, with everyting John said and also your liver won't produce as much cholesterol on its own once you eat more EI eggs. Studies say that 3 a day is best.. but John's article is a bit more in depth. I will post a link.

http://scotthermanfitness.com/article/Cholesterol-and-Fat-Are-Not-The-Enemy

Damn @jmboiardi you beat me too it! I had this saved to answer once I go settled in back home haha.

Well, with everyting John said and also your liver won't produce as much cholesterol on its own once you eat more EI eggs. Studies say that 3 a day is best.. but John's article is a bit more in depth. I will post a link.

http://scotthermanfitness.com/article/Cholesterol-and-Fat-Are-Not-The-Enemy

Great! I just read the article and it is very insightful. I feel sad by all the misconceptions there are in regards to eating healthily. I am going to start doing some research about how much cholesterol I should intake based on my fitness goals and body so I get enough on the days I don't eat six eggs for breakfast.