Why you SHOULD eat Egg Yolks

Eggs have been shown to have a wide range of health benefits, providing 13 essential vitamins and minerals, high-quality protein and antioxidants, all for just 70 calories. Years of credible research has demonstrated the positive effects of the high-quality protein andnutrients in eggs on weight management, eye health and in supporting a healthy pregnancy.

A Harvard study with more than one hundred thousand subjects found no significant difference in cardiovascular disease risk between those consuming less than one egg per week and those consuming one egg per day. The researchers concluded that consumption of up to one egg per day is unlikely to have substantial overall impact on the risk of heart disease or stroke among healthy men and women.

Alternatively, lifestyle factors including poor diet, smoking, obesity and physical inactivity contribute to 30 to 40 percent of heart disease risk, depending on gender.

More Vitamins

Egg yolks contain more vitamins — and larger quantities of those vitamins — than egg whites. Each egg yolk contains seven vitamins: B6, folate, a B vitamin, B-12, A, D, E and K. Of those, vitamins A, D, E and K are found only in egg yolks and not in egg whites. In fact, egg yolks are one of only a handful of foods in which vitamin D is naturally found.

More Minerals

Like vitamins, minerals are crucial nutritional building blocks, essential for carrying out body functions like balancing electrolytes. Egg yolks -- and egg whites — each have 13 varieties of minerals. These minerals include calcium, magnesium, iron, potassium, sodium and selenium. Although both the egg white and egg yolk contain these minerals, the yolk has larger amounts of most. For example, 90 percent of an egg's calcium is in its yolk; 93 percent of its iron content is in the yolk, with just 7 percent in the white.

Benefits of Choline

Egg yolks — and the vitamins, minerals and other nutrients found within them — also help promote heart and cardiovascular health. Not only does the moderate consumption of egg yolks not show a direct connection to heart disease, but nutrients in the yolk — such as choline — help to regulate cardiovascular function. Additionally, a study by the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill found women with the highest level of choline intake were 24 percent less likely than women who got the least choline in their diets to develop breast cancer.

It is important to pair eggs with other good-for-you foods, such as fruits, vegetables, low-fat dairy (if you lactose tolerant) and whole grains (if you are not on a gluten free diet) as part of a balanced diet. Enjoying an egg a day can fall within current cholesterol guidelines, particularly if individuals opt for other low-cholesterol foods throughout the day.