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Why Eggs Don't Contribute Much Cholesterol To Diet

Cliff Notes:

The researchers controlled experimental conditions to specifically look at egg phospholipid and its effect on cholesterol absorption. Even though a good amount of cholesterol is consumed when an egg is eaten, much of the cholesterol becomes "unavailable for absorption" in the presence of the phospholipid, Koo said.

The phospholipid, or lecithin, found in egg markedly inhibits the cholesterol absorption. The inhibition is not 100 percent, he said. Some cholesterol is absorbed but the amount is significantly reduced in the presence of this phospholipid.

"Less absorption means less cholesterol introduced into the blood," Koo said. "We were able to determine experimentally that a substantial amount of the egg cholesterol is not going into the blood stream."

Egg contains a higher quality protein than protein found in meat, milk or fish.

Furthermore, egg is a significant source of vitamins A and E, and B vitamins B-6, B-12 and folate, which are known to lower blood levels of homocysteine, an independent risk factor for heart disease.