Eggs might not be good for you!
Eggs are a food that are rich in EFA’s and Protein. Great for breakfast or snack AND if you are like my family…we LOVE EGGS for dinner. It makes for a wonderful, tasty, light meal. Because of our love for eggs, I wanted to make sure we weren’t overdoing it.
Past studies in the U.S. have indicated that eggs are high in cholesterol therefore they cause high cholesterol. Eggs are high in fat therefore that make you fat. Both of these couldn’t be more off base. There is a controversial “debate” going on between the Egg Nutrition Council and the Egg/ Chicken Advocates.
Eggs are a healthy food filled with vital nutrients. Take a look at this study done by Mother Earth News that shows the nutritional difference between eggs from the supermarket and eggs that are from chickens that are truly free range/pasture eggs.
“Mother Earth News collected samples from 14 pastured flocks across the country and had them tested at an accredited laboratory. The results were compared to official US Department of Agriculture data for commercial eggs. Results showed the pastured eggs contained an amazing:
- 1/3 less cholesterol than commercial eggs
- 1/4 less saturated fat
- 2/3 more vitamin A
- 2 times more omega-3 fatty acids
- 7 times more beta carotene
- 4-6 times more V-D
Full results of the tests are available in the October/November 2007 issue of Mother Earth News, or on their website at http://www.MotherEarthNews.com/eggs. Check Eatwild’s Pastured Products Directory to find free-range eggs near you.”
I find the data collected from this study truly amazing. Who would have thought that by simply allowing chickens the ability to be “free” would have this type of an effect on the egg itself? Food for thought…that goes for people too, I imagine. Break free from the chains that bind you, whether they are toxic beliefs collected throughout your life, spiritual, or emotional, break free from them and your metabolism will be set free as well.
Here are some other interesting tidbits about eggs that may help you in getting the freshest possible.
Some things you might not know about eggs
- No refrigeration required for eggs from pasture-raised hens (unless they were refrigerated before you picked them up.
- Do not pre-wash pasture eggs, the egg is naturally coated with a light layer of natural sealing agent called “bloom”. This coating protects the egg from “aging” by the air and from the bacteria in the air.
- The fresher the egg, the white will appear cloudy.
- Beware – the lighter colored the yolk, the chicken was corn fed.
- A yolk w blood spots is caused by a breaking of a blood vessel along the surface of the yolk. This is not a contamination.
Nutritive information you may not know about eggs – they are loaded!
- Egg yolk supplies the cholesterol needed for mental development
- Eggs are rich in vitamins A and D
- Eggs are rich in Choline for mental acuity in adults. (Choline is a coenzyme needed for metabolism, choline exists in all living cells, but is probably best known as a major part of lecithin–the emulsifier that keeps fats and cholesterol from clumping together in the blood)
- Eggs are one of the few foods which contain all 8 of the essential amino acids (out body can make whatever non-essential proteins needed from the 8 essential ones)
- Eggs from free range chickens will not raise cholesterol. This study was in the New England Journal of Medicine. The factory supermarket eggs have a ratio of omega 6’s to omega 3’s, 20 to 1, whereas the eggs from free range chickens are perfectly balanced ǿ 1 to 1.
Eggs are one of the wholesome foods we choose to eat. Find a local farmer in your area. They typically post signs out on the drive in the rural areas. You can also try, http://www.localharvest.org/, they will have a listing of local farms in your area.
Would love to hear your comments on this article, please leave them below…along with where you get your eggs.
Enjoy!
Ashly