Breakfast egg not bad for the heart

Eggs do not cause an increased stroke or heart attack risk

01/02/2013

For a long time breakfast eggs were suspected of having a negative influence on the cholesterol level and thus on the risk of strokes and heart attacks. However, a recent meta-analysis relieved, according to the report of the specialist magazine „BMJ“ the breakfast egg. A Chinese-American research team had investigated possible associations between egg consumption and the occurrence of cardiovascular diseases (heart attack, coronary heart disease). The scientists found that even the daily consumption of eggs has little impact on the risk of stroke and heart attack.

From previous studies it is known that high levels of harmful LDL cholesterol in the blood lead to an increased risk of cardiovascular events. Since eggs were suspected to significantly increase the LDL level, they were also assumed a negative effect on health. The daily breakfast egg would lead to an increased heart attack and stroke risk, so the thesis. However, researchers at the Harvard School of Public Health in Boston (USA) and the University of Science and Technology at Wuhan (China) have now shown that egg consumption has little effect on harmful LDL cholesterol. LDL cholesterol is considered to play a significant role in the development of arteriosclerosis and other vascular diseases.

Risk of heart disease not increased by eggs
Although a large breakfast egg contains up to 275 milligrams of cholesterol, according to the scientists, the cholesterol level is only marginally influenced. The meta-analysis of eight previous studies with more than 260,000 patients and a duration of eight to 20 years confirmed that daily breakfast egg is not associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular events. So have „the relative risk of coronary heart disease in one egg per day is 0.99“, the scientists report. A value of one would have represented a consistent risk. Also, the relative stroke risk was only 0.91 per day per egg. Thus, theoretically, eggs could even protect against heart disease. However, partial analyzes of the data showed that the subjects with the highest egg consumption had a relative risk of coronary heart disease of 1.54 compared to those with the lowest egg consumption, thus a significant increase in risk was observed here.

No complete all-clear with respect to the breakfast egg
In order to finally absolve the breakfast egg from any suspicion, according to the researchers further investigation is urgently needed. A recommendation for unconditional egg consumption could not be made on the basis of current findings. So the underlying diseases of the patients should always be considered. The board member of the German Heart Foundation, Professor Helmut Gohlke, former chief physician at the Heart Center Bad Krozingen said in an online consultation on the risk of breakfast eggs: „If you have no coronary artery disease or vascular arteriosclerosis, the use of eggs is less of a concern than if you already have significant arteriosclerotic changes on the coronary arteries or, for example, the cervical vessels.“ Finally it comes „to rethink the overall concept of nutrition and to opt for a diet that has a focus on vegetables, salad, fruits and wholegrain products in the Mediterranean diet“, so the further information of the German Heart Foundation. (Fp)

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Picture: Norbert Enyegue