The info on eggs can confuse even the savviest shoppers. Once considered bad for you and a promoter of heart disease, eggs have enjoyed a revival and are now back in the health spotlight. And that’s as it should be, considering people have been eating them for millennia. In the United States, people most commonly eat eggs from chickens, specifically the single-comb white leghorn. (1)
In the 1920s and ’30s, egg production was a small-scale affair. Farmers raised their own backyard chickens, often to supply their own families. By the 1940s, farmers were taking steps to make egg production more efficient and sanitary. In the 1960s, smaller farms gave way to large commercial production, which boosted the number of eggs that each hen could lay — a good thing, because demand today is through the roof. (1) Annually in the United States, 50 billion eggs are produced — that’s a lot of omelets, to say the least. (2)
Eggs are a rich source of nutrition, especially when it comes to protein, notes the U.S. Department of Agriculture's MyPlate guidelines. One large egg contains 72 calories (4 percent of your daily value on a 2,000-calorie diet), 6 grams (g) of protein (12 percent of your DV), and 5 g of fat (8 percent of your DV). (3,4,5) They have no fiber. (3) The yolk supplies all the cholesterol — 186 mg, or 62 percent of the recommended 300 mg limit per day. (6)
For most people, eating one egg per day has been shown to be safe. (7) It supplies a satiating mix of both protein and fat, and it contains 13 essential vitamins and minerals, like fat-soluble vitamin A; vitamin E, vitamin D, and vitamin K; choline, an important nutrient for fetal development during pregnancy; and eyesight-preserving antioxidants like lutein and zeaxanthin. (8)
Even people with type 2 diabetes, who have a greater risk for developing heart disease, can safely eat eggs. One study looked at adults with type 2 diabetes or prediabetes and found that people on a high-egg-consumption weight loss diet for three months didn’t experience any negative effects on their cholesterol levels or markers of inflammation. (9)
Though you can eat eggs at any time of day, it’s no accident that eggs are most often eaten at breakfast. In a classic study looking at equal-calorie egg or bagel breakfasts, healthy overweight or obese adults who ate eggs as part of a weight loss diet for eight weeks lost 65 percent more weight than the bagel eaters. (10)
Later research seems to confirm the idea that you should trade a traditional carb-y breakfast for a protein-rich egg one. A small study of men ages 20 to 70 found that those who consumed an egg breakfast ate fewer calories during the day than men who ate a bagel breakfast, likely because eggs suppressed appetite hormones and improved satisfaction. (11)
For a long time, it was assumed that because egg yolks contained dietary cholesterol, the nutrient would clog arteries and potentially increase heart disease risk. For that reason, in 1968, the American Heart Association (AHA) recommended that people consume no more than 300 mg of dietary cholesterol (the cholesterol in your food) a day and eat no more than three eggs per week, as eggs are a big source of cholesterol. (12) (The Food and Drug Administration still recommends limiting dietary cholesterol to 300 mg per day.) (6) However, newer research shows that eggs are not a threat to heart health in healthy folks. Cholesterol is a necessary nutrient that helps your body manufacture hormones and vitamin D. (13) A study of more than 800 men found that egg intake — or cholesterol intake, for that matter — did not buoy heart disease risk, even in those who are genetically predisposed to have higher cholesterol levels. (14) So what actually does raise cholesterol levels? Unhealthy eating, not exercising, and smoking. (13)
It’s also important to remember, as the AHA points out, that eggs contain saturated fat (1.5 g per large egg). When sat fat is eaten in excess, it can increase cholesterol levels, something that does raise heart disease risk. (15,3) While one egg per day has been shown to be safe, talk to your doctor about what’s right for you and your unique health concerns.
Eggs should be purchased from the refrigerated case. (It’s the law in the United States, but not in Europe due to differing production practices.) (16) Flip the carton open and make sure eggs are clean and none are cracked, and don’t purchase expired cartons, advises the Egg Safety Center. (17) When you get home, put eggs in the refrigerator right away in their original carton. (18) Make sure to eat them within three weeks. Here’s how to decipher other egg-label lingo:
One of the best things about eggs is their versatility in dishes, meaning that they don’t have to get boring as long as you play around with preparations, including:
Remember: To reduce the risk of possible foodborne illness, it’s recommended that eggs are cooked until firm, not runny. (21) As an example, that means ordering or cooking fried eggs over hard — not over easy.
Raw eggs can be contaminated with salmonella, a bacterium from the birds that gets into the eggs before the shells are formed.
But the catch is that you can’t tell just by looking at the eggs themselves. (22) Symptoms like diarrhea, fever, and abdominal pain can appear 6 to 48 hours after eating a bad egg, but fortunately most people recover without treatment.
Reduce your risk by buying pasteurized eggs, refrigerate eggs, don’t eat cracked eggs, and cook eggs all the way through — the whites and yolks should be hard. (22)
A: One large egg contains 72 calories. (3) The yolk supplies 55 of those calories, while the white has 17 calories. (4,5)
A: You’ll get about 6 g of protein in a large egg. (3) Most of that comes from the white, offering 3.6 g of protein, while the yolk has 2.7. (5,4)
A: Yes, the yolks are packed with health-promoting vitamins and antioxidants. They contain vitamins A, D, E, and K, and choline, as well as antioxidants lutein and zeaxanthin. (23)
A: While egg whites supply a good source of protein, that’s really all they supply. Skipping the yolk means you miss out on the satiating fat in a yolk plus the vitamins and antioxidants previously mentioned. (23)
A: No! Eating eggs is linked to weight loss, thanks to their high-quality protein. While they’ve been previously blamed for causing heart disease, new data suggests otherwise. Research on over a half million adults shows that eating up to one egg per day is actually associated with an 18 and 28 percent lower risk of death from cardiovascular disease and bleeding stroke compared with not eating eggs. (24)
If you’re vegetarian or vegan and do not eat eggs, you can make a flax egg to replace eggs in baking and recipes. For each egg, mix 1 tablespoon (tbsp) of flaxseed meal and 3 tbsp of water; let sit for five minutes to “gel” up like an egg. (25)
To reduce your risk of foodborne illness and enjoy eggs, eat them only if you know they’ve been properly refrigerated. (It prevents the spread of salmonella inside the egg.) (26)
If on the way home from the store an egg cracks, you can break it into a separate air-tight container and store in the fridge to eat within two days. (27) When you’re ready to eat your eggs, crack each one into a separate bowl before using to determine if it's good. Cloudy egg whites are fresh. The hue of the yolk matters less — whether it’s a dark or light yellow or even orange in color is more of a reflection of the hen’s diet. (28)
Blood spots are caused by a rupture of small vessels in the yolk, but these eggs are fine to eat.
Luckily, it’s fairly obvious when you have a bad egg in front of you. Toss any eggs that have pink, green, or iridescent whites or black or green spots in the inside. These signs are indications that the egg is spoiled or contaminated. (28)
One new diet trend: the boiled egg diet. News reports explain that this diet involves eating most of your calories from eggs, particularly hard-boiled eggs, in order to lose weight. The diet requires people to eat one and up to nine eggs a day for a week. (29) However, this isn’t endorsed by any major U.S. health organization or medical center, and there aren’t studies to support that eating this way promotes health or weight loss. While eggs do fit into a balanced diet, it’s not recommended to eat nine in a day. When it comes to eggs, they may be packed with nutrition, but moderation is key.