Eggs get more bad press than Lindsay Lohan. Every week there’s a new study saying ‘Eggs are bad!’ or ‘Eggs are good!’ Don’t believe the hype. Eggs are included in the Military Diet because of their high nutrient density and fat burning properties.
People think the offending part of the egg is the yolk. Yes, eggs have cholesterol and fat, but that’s also where the nutrition is – the yolk is the healthiest part of the egg. Throwing out the yolk is like tossing the prize from a Kinder egg into the trash. And let’s face it, egg white omelettes are neither tasty or nutritious. The egg yolk contains A and B vitamins, minerals, folate, calcium, iron – and the list goes on. Free range egg yolks are loaded with even more healthy omega-3 fatty acids.
Egg Yolks are a Cholesterol Myth
People avoid cholesterol like the plague, but eggs don’t actually raise your bad cholesterol. Eating whole eggs raises your good cholesterol (HDL) and keeps your bad cholesterol (LDL) static. Higher levels of HDL lowers your risk of heart disease.
Despite what big pharmaceutical companies would have you believe, high cholesterol is not a disease. Heart disease is a disease. And heart disease is caused by inflammation, not dietary cholesterol. Yolks contain an antioxidant called lutein which protects the body from inflammation. Despite the facts, half the world is on Lipitor thinking they can eat whatever they want!
When you eat something with a high amount of dietary cholesterol like an egg, your body lowers its internal production of cholesterol to balance things out. When you don’t eat enough cholesterol, the body produces more because cholesterol actually serves dozens of important functions in the body.
Eggs burn fat
For those that are afraid of calories and fat, eggs are not the enemy. Eggs are included in the Military Diet because they are nutrient rich and burn fat. There’s a couple of reasons for that.
1. The healthy levels of fat in egg yolks maintain a healthy level of fat burning hormones in your body. The fat in egg yolks help burn body fat!
2. Because egg yolks are so nutrient dense, they help regulate your appetite for the day so you end up consuming less calories overall.
Another reason to eat eggs…
A study recently compared two groups of breakfast eaters. One group ate eggs at breakfast and the other group ate grains (cereals, toast, bagels). The egg eaters lost or maintained body weight and the grain eaters gained weight. Eggs don’t mess with your blood sugar levels like bagels and Fruit Loops, so the egg eaters also stayed fuller longer and made healthier choices for the rest of the day.
