The American Heart Association has told us that eggs increase our risks of heart disease and stroke. However, the evidence has not shown this to be the facts. In a culture of every decision in health care being made based on evidence, this is an actual recommendation that was made just on the “potential risk.” Eggs have quite a bit of cholesterol in them so it did seem reasonable that eating eggs would increase cholesterol. However, the largest source of the harmful cholesterol has actually come from eating sugar. These are the facts.
Why are eggs so healthy for us? Eggs are rich in Omega 3 fats that are essential to a healthy immune system, cellular repair and reproduction, brain health, and so much more. The yolk is the richest part of the egg. But like everything else, all eggs are not created equal. There is a difference in the quality and nutritional content of the eggs.
Free – range, organically raised hens will produce better eggs. According to the Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education Study, pastured hens will produce over 10% less fat and 34 percent less cholesterol. There is also a significant increase in Vitamin A and E, with over 50% and 200%, respectively. This is amazing and well worth the care to make sure you get the right kind of egg.
In addition, researchers at Tufts University at the Friedman School of Nutrition found that the major determinant of blood cholesterol is the amount of saturated fat that one consumes and not the cholesterol. It is also important to note that eggs are very low in saturated fats. The misconception about eggs causing heart attacks is certainly old news and just not substantiated by the research.
Furthermore, the impressive results are that free-range hens, as compared to caged hens (commercial eggs that you buy in a grocery store), will contain four times the amount of this abundant fat. Therefore, the additional costs of free-range, organically fed, naturally grazing hens will produce the best product. However, the costs of keeping free-range hens are double to triple the costs of commercially kept hens. Why is this? There are several reasons such as hen loss, feeding waste, labor, and infrastructure to name only a few. In addition, there is no commercial machinery to gather these pastured eggs because it is all done by hand. Therefore, there is more labor involved. The average costs, nationally, of organically raised, cage-free eggs is around $5 a dozen.
If you are considering an egg share from Doc’s Organic Center, we are only selling 50 shares this year. We are over half way there. Once they are sold, there will be no more. I am a huge fan of these girls and I eat their eggs almost daily. I hope that you will join me in supporting “these ladies.”