So when did eggs become "OK" again?

[Telly]

Once upon a time, eggs were, well, eggs.

Then eggs were identified as cholesterol-creating arterial pluggers. So eggs became bad bad bad. IIRC, recommendations of no more than two eggs per week.

So over the years, many of us drifted away from having eggs as a main meal dish. Although I was never a big egg-eater as it was.

Recently, I clicked across a cooking show where a French Chef did an interesting variation of sunnyside-up. So we tried it, and I really like it, but have it maybe once every two weeks or so as a quick to prepare meal.

Lo and behold, in a small column on eggs in the Jan. '08 Consumer Reports, there is this comment: "FYI, eggs are no longer thought to have a significant impact on blood cholesterol". What? When did this happen?

It also begs the question, what other "facts" of today about foods become relegated to fiction in the future? Which of course has no answer today, as "facts" of today could not possibly be wrong...

 

[cute fuzzy bunny]

I've come to the conclusion that almost everything is good for you and almost everything is bad for you, and nobody has a frickin clue about how specific foods will affect an individual.

Most of these food 'studies' rely on the people being studied reliably reporting what they do and dont eat over a period of time. If theres one thing people lie consistently about, its what they eat and how much of it.

I wouldnt eat a lot of anything that has a lot of fat or sugar in it. Seems to me that everything in moderation will be just fine.

 

[RonBoyd]

The answer to your specific question is: "A long long time ago."

A search for the answers to your implied questions should begin with the book, "Good Calories, Bad Calories: Challenging the Conventional Wisdom on Diet, Weight Control, and Disease," Gary Taubes, Alfred A. Knopf, New York, 2007, isbn 978-I-4000-4078-0.

From the Book Jacket: "... Gary Taubes shows us that almost everything we beleive about the nature of a healthy diet is wrong."

Enjoy your meal,
Ron

 

[FinanceDude]

Since 80 year old dairy farmers started winning arm wrestling contests with their 25 year old grandsons........

 

[Martha]

Here is what the Mayo clinic has to say on the issue: Eggs: Are they good or bad for my cholesterol? - MayoClinic.com

 

[RonBoyd]

But... to get back on track. It is important to recognize that the issue here is whether high cholesterol is even unhealthy and NOT where you can obtain it.

This is a good place to start:
The Soft Science of Dietary Fat - Second Opinions

particularly:
Why is 5.2 (200) a 'Healthy' Cholesterol Level - Second Opinions

or more generally:
Fats, Cholesterol and Cardiovascular Disease Information Point - Second Opinions

particularly:
The Cholesterol Myth: Introduction — Second Opinions

It seems to me that "everything in moderation" would be a much better policy than trying to follow every fad the food police keep throwing at us.

Ron

 

[Walt34]

The study that convinced me was one in which "scientists" were determining that fatty steaks were "bad". But when their study was done they ate the steaks.

 

[Goonie]

It seems to me that "everything in moderation" would be a much better policy than trying to follow every fad the food police keep throwing at us.

That's always been my opinion. Since it seems that scientific and medical gurus can't come to an agreement one way or the other, I'll stick with my opinion. I have bacon & eggs, or beef hash & eggs about once a week. Occasionally I'll have some sort of breakfast sandwich with egg on it, when I go out for morning coffee with my friends.

I probably would have starved to death by now if I would have listened to all of the differing ideas about what's good or bad for me over the years. Because I think over all these years they've concluded, at some point or another, that anything you eat is bad for you!

 

[toofrugalformycat]

Dietary recommendations change often, and different bodies process food differently. What works for us is getting our blood chemistry tested once a year. You can get it done cheaply ($35) or sometimes for free at health fairs in my town.
When DH and I cut out most dietary cholesterol because of his high total cholesterol and my family history of heart disease, my HDL (good cholesterol) became extremely low, danger zone. I added one egg yolk a day, and mine is good now. So with hard-boiled eggs he tosses all the yolks, I toss all but one.
It depends on what kind of liver you were born with. I'm sure there are other variables in our lives that may have changed too, but this works for us now. You won't know what works for you unless you get your blood tested.

 

[FinanceDude]

That's always been my opinion. Since it seems that scientific and medical gurus can't come to an agreement one way or the other, I'll stick with my opinion. I have bacon & eggs, or beef hash & eggs about once a week. Occasionally I'll have some sort of breakfast sandwich with egg on it, when I go out for morning coffee with my friends.

I probably would have starved to death by now if I would have listened to all of the differing ideas about what's good or bad for me over the years. Because I think over all these years they've concluded, at some point or another, that anything you eat is bad for you!

I heard a comedian a few years ago talk about all the warnings and scare tactics, and his remark was: "Man, everything has a label or tag saying may cause cancer, etc. Maybe we can put that fear to good risk, how about having blue jeans with tags on the zippers saying: "enter at your own risk"?

 

[W2R]

I probably would have starved to death by now if I would have listened to all of the differing ideas about what's good or bad for me over the years. Because I think over all these years they've concluded, at some point or another, that anything you eat is bad for you!

Even brussels sprouts?

 

[cute fuzzy bunny]

A distant cousin to Broccoli, The Silent Killer.

(Yeah I know, they're more of a cabbage thing)

 

[Khan]

My operating food hypothesis is based loosely on evolution: how long have we (as a species) been eating this stuff?

I eat more of the older stuff.

Long time: roots, berries, nuts, fruits, meat, eggs, shellfish, shallow water fish...
~10,000 years: deep water fish, dairy, grains, beans, ethanol, many vegetables...
~150 years: highly refined grains/flours/sugars, corn fed ruminants...
Very small amounts until recently: methanol, transfats...
Recent stuff the body doesn't really know what to do with: HFCS, huge hunks of transfats, all sorts preservatives/chelators/emulsifiers/dyes...

As I said: loosely based.

 

[cute fuzzy bunny]

See, thats why I eat a lot of Ho-Ho's. I figure the modern digestive system doesnt know what they are, so it just passes them undigested.

If that doesnt seem to work, I apply a large quantity of beer.

 

[Life_is_Good]

Newest eggs in my store

I've noticed the eggs in my store are now brown, all natural, no hormones, vegatable fed, and claim to provide Omega-3's. When did Omega-3's begin to show up in eggs?

 

[cute fuzzy bunny]

They feed flax seed to the chickens. Omegas from the flax ends up in the egg.

 

[ERD50]

I've noticed the eggs in my store are now brown, all natural, no hormones, vegatable fed, and claim to provide Omega-3's. When did Omega-3's begin to show up in eggs?

Egg Producers Make Bogus Omega-3 Claims

June 21, 2007
Consumers who shell out more money for eggs boasting of omega-3 content and promoting heart health should know that those claims are not all they’re cracked up to be, according to the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI).
....


“Egg producers have used the omega-3 buzz word to bilk health-conscious consumers — and so far they’ve gotten away with it,” said CSPI executive director Michael F. Jacobson. “The FDA should start enforcing its own rules, instead of letting companies hoodwink shoppers with a myriad of misleading and downright inaccurate claims on labels, ads, and Web sites.”
Egg producers take advantage of consumers’ limited knowledge of the different types of omega-3s.


While the FDA permits claims for a possible reduced risk of heart disease linked to two kinds of omega-3s, DHA and EPA, the agency does not allow such claims for other omega-3s.
....

“The most beneficial omega-3 fatty acids come from fish, fish oil, and algae,” said CSPI senior staff attorney Ilene Heller. “Even if eggs had the ‘right’ kind of omega-3s, they still contain significant levels of saturated fat and cholesterol, which increase the risk of heart disease.”
Even the eggs with the most DHA and EPA contain no more of those omega-3s than the amount in one and a half teaspoons of salmon, the richest source of omega-3s, according to CSPI.


Products named in the CSPI complaint include:

• Land O Lakes claims ...
• Eggland’s Best uses unapproved nutrient content claims for omega-3s ...
• Safeway Specialty 3 Eggs misleadingly boasts ...
• Gold Circle Farms claims ...
• The Country Hen illegally claims ....
• Full Spectrum Farms boasts ...

• Giving Nature asserts that the company feeds its hens flax seed which “has been known to hold high levels of DHA omega-3.” But, according to the Flax Council of Canada and others, the omega-3s that FDA considers healthful (DHA and EPA) are not found in plants such as flax seed.

-ERD50

 

[RetireeRobert]

"FYI, eggs are no longer thought to have a significant impact on blood cholesterol". What? When did this happen?

It was 12 years, 4 months, and 16 days ago. It was a Thursday as I recall.

Reminds me of the Woody Allen movie "Sleeper". He wakes up several hundred years in the future. He gets this befuddled consternated look on his face as he is watches a TV news show. The newscaster says a new study has shown that steak, ice cream, butter, etc have been found to be health foods that extend your life.

 

[RonBoyd]

Another addition to the confusion:

"Cholesterol as a Danger Has Skeptics "

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/17/business/17drug.html?th&emc=th

 

[W2R]

Another addition to the confusion:

"Cholesterol as a Danger Has Skeptics "

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/17/business/17drug.html?th&emc=th

Thank you for reminding me to take my Vytorin, which I forgot to take last night!

Personally I still think it is smart to take it, although it costs me $21/month even with my prescription drug card.

 

[REWahoo]

Thank you for reminding me to take my Vytorin, which I forgot to take last night!

Personally I still think it is smart to take it, although it costs me $21/month even with my prescription drug card.

Guess you've seen this?

The News About Vytorin Sounds Bad, but Don't Panic - US News and World Report

 

[W2R]

Guess you've seen this?

The News About Vytorin Sounds Bad, but Don't Panic - US News and World Report

Eek. No, I hadn't seen it. On first superficial and totally non-thorough glance it does seem to me like 3 deaths instead of 2 might possibly indicate an insufficient sample size, but gee whiz. I want to get the best that modern medicine has to offer, and maybe all the hoop-la over Vytorin was unjustified.

A statement that got my attention as much as anything is that the generic Symvastatin seems as effective as Vytorin. With my drug card, generics cost me almost nothing.

I just don't want to allow all that ugly plaque to build up in my arteries, if that might lead to problems down the road! It seems like so much health responsibility evolves onto the patient these days.

 

[Telly]

Eek. No, I hadn't seen it.

And here I thought that you were being facetious, that paying $21/mo. was still giving you some "health" benefit!

 

[Telly]

Thanks for the egg links. I guess I can trust the Mayo Clinic... uh, wait a minute... isn't one of the main ingredients of mayo, eggs? A hidden conflict of interest?

I'm still not going to touch egg nog, or anything with raw eggs

 

[cute fuzzy bunny]

I just don't want to allow all that ugly plaque to build up in my arteries, if that might lead to problems down the road! It seems like so much health responsibility evolves onto the patient these days.

Not a doctor, and I've never even stayed at a holiday inn, but I thought I saw some materials that said the zocor piece of vytorin was effective, but that the zetia piece actually may cause higher plaque buildups than people not using it at all.

That and another article I saw suggested that the old statins that are all available in generic form are as effective or more effective than the newer ones.