The Great Egg Redemption: How Science Saved Breakfast (But Not Your Wallet)
For decades, the humble egg was treated like a ticking time bomb for your arteries. Nutrition guidelines told us to avoid them, doctors warned us about cholesterol, and many Americans swapped their morning omelet for a sad bowl of processed cereal. But here’s the kicker—those recommendations weren’t based on strong science. Instead, industry interests heavily influenced them, outdated theories, and a lot of fear-mongering.
Now, eggs are back on the menu. Science has finally caught up, and experts agree that dietary cholesterol isn’t the villain it was made out to be. But just when we thought we could enjoy eggs guilt-free, bird flu struck, prices skyrocketed, and suddenly, eggs became the new luxury item. So, how did we get here? Let’s crack open the truth.
The Food Pyramid: A Big Business, Not Big Science
If you grew up in the 90s, you probably remember the Food Pyramid. It told us to eat 6-11 servings of bread, pasta, and cereal every day, while foods like eggs, meat, and fats were placed at the top—basically labeled "Eat Sparingly."
But was this pyramid built on solid science? Not exactly.
The grain industry played a huge role in shaping these guidelines. In the 1970s and 80s, low-fat diets became the gold standard for heart health. The idea was simple: eating fat leads to heart disease, so cutting out fat would make us healthier. Unfortunately, that’s not what happened.
Instead, food companies removed fat from products and replaced it with sugar and processed carbs—because, let’s face it, fat-free food tastes terrible without something to make it palatable. As a result, Americans ended up eating way more refined carbs and sugar, leading to a spike in obesity and type 2 diabetes (Ludwig et al., 2018).
Meanwhile, eggs—one of nature’s most nutrient-dense and affordable foods—were put on the naughty list.
The War on Eggs: How a Bad Idea Became Dietary Dogma
The real egg panic began in 1968 when the American Heart Association (AHA) declared that dietary cholesterol was a major cause of heart disease. They recommended eating no more than three eggs per week (Kritchevsky, 1999).
But here’s the problem—this recommendation wasn’t based on strong human studies. Instead, it was based on:
- Animal Studies – Scientists fed cholesterol to rabbits, which are naturally herbivores, and (shocker!) their cholesterol went up. But rabbits process cholesterol differently than humans (McNamara, 2000).
- Epidemiological Correlations – Early studies linked high cholesterol intake to heart disease, but they didn’t separate it from other factors like saturated fat, smoking, or lack of exercise (Hu et al., 1999).
- Clinical Studies With Unrealistic Diets – Some studies tested cholesterol intake using six eggs per day—which is way more than most people eat (Fernandez, 2006).
Meanwhile, many scientists already knew that dietary cholesterol had minimal impact on blood cholesterol for most people. Our bodies naturally regulate cholesterol production—when we eat more cholesterol, the liver produces less to balance it out (Griffin & Lichtenstein, 2013).
But by the time the science caught up, the damage was done. Food companies had already flooded the market with...
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