{"id":10451,"date":"2026-09-15T16:51:31","date_gmt":"2026-09-15T14:51:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/healandflourish.com\/?p=10451"},"modified":"2026-09-15T17:10:14","modified_gmt":"2026-09-15T15:10:14","slug":"are-eggs-bad-for-you-what-2-new-studies-show","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/healandflourish.com\/vi\/are-eggs-bad-for-you-what-2-new-studies-show\/","title":{"rendered":"What You Don&#8217;t Know Yet About Eggs"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>For decades, eggs got a bad reputation. Doctors, headlines, and diet books all pointed at the yolk and told you to watch your cholesterol \u2014 so an entire generation of us swapped whole eggs for egg-white omelets, or cut them out almost entirely.<\/p>\n\n<p>Here&#8217;s what you should know: two new studies published this year \u2014 in two different countries, looking at two completely different health outcomes \u2014 both suggest that avoidance may have been the wrong call all along. One followed heart health and lifespan. The other followed brain health. Here&#8217;s what each one actually found, including the parts that keep it honest.<\/p>\n\n<h2>Weekly eggs, lower risk of dying \u2014 especially from heart disease<\/h2>\n\n<p>Researchers followed 8,756 Australians aged 70 and older for close to six years, as part of the ASPREE study. Compared to people who rarely or never ate eggs, those who ate eggs weekly (anywhere from once to six times a week) had:<\/p>\n\n<ul>\n<li><strong>17% lower risk of dying from any cause<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>29% lower risk of dying from cardiovascular disease specifically<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n<p>For people who already had high cholesterol, the drop in cardiovascular death risk was even bigger \u2014 27% lower with weekly eggs. And for people already eating a moderate-to-high quality diet overall, weekly eggs were tied to a 33\u201344% lower cardiovascular death risk \u2014 suggesting eggs added something on top of a diet that was already solid, rather than just being a marker of healthy eating in general.<\/p>\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/healandflourish.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/eggs_chart_mortality_stats.png?ssl=1\" alt=\"Chart: 17% lower risk of dying any cause, 29% lower risk of dying from heart disease, 27% lower heart-death risk with high cholesterol - weekly eggs vs rarely\/never, ASPREE study\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n<p>One honest wrinkle: eating eggs <em>daily<\/em> didn&#8217;t show a statistically significant benefit over not eating them at all. The clearest signal was in the weekly range, not at the extremes. More frequent isn&#8217;t automatically better \u2014 a few times a week appears to be where the benefit shows up most clearly.<\/p>\n\n<h2>More eggs, more protection for your brain<\/h2>\n\n<p>The second study is bigger and longer: over 40,000 adults aged 65 and up, followed for an average of 15.3 years, through the Adventist Health Study-2, with Alzheimer&#8217;s cases confirmed against Medicare records (not just self-report). Compared to people who rarely ate eggs, the risk of developing Alzheimer&#8217;s disease was:<\/p>\n\n<ul>\n<li><strong>17% lower<\/strong> eating eggs 1\u20133 times a month<\/li>\n<li><strong>20% lower<\/strong> eating eggs 2\u20134 times a week<\/li>\n<li><strong>Up to 27% lower<\/strong> eating eggs 5+ times a week (about one egg a day or more)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/healandflourish.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/eggs_chart_alzheimers_dose.png?ssl=1\" alt=\"Chart: Alzheimer's risk drops with more frequent egg intake - 17% lower at 1-3x\/month, 20% lower at 2-4x\/week, 27% lower at 5+x\/week\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n<p>That&#8217;s a dose-response pattern \u2014 the more often people ate eggs, the lower their risk tended to be, all the way up to daily. Researchers counted eggs hidden in baked goods and packaged foods too, not just the ones on your breakfast plate.<\/p>\n\n<h2>What&#8217;s actually in an egg that could do this<\/h2>\n\n<p>Nobody&#8217;s claiming eggs are magic, but there are real candidates for <em>why<\/em> this pattern shows up:<\/p>\n\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Choline<\/strong> \u2014 your body uses it to build acetylcholine, a brain chemical involved in memory and communication between brain cells. One egg yolk is one of the most concentrated everyday sources of it.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Lutein and zeaxanthin<\/strong> \u2014 carotenoids that accumulate in brain tissue and have been linked to better cognitive performance and less oxidative stress.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Omega-3s and phospholipids<\/strong> \u2014 make up close to 30% of the fat in egg yolk, and are involved in how brain cells&#8217; receptors function.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n<h2>The honest caveats<\/h2>\n\n<p>Both studies are observational \u2014 they show a pattern, not proof that eggs <em>caused<\/em> the improvement, and neither is a substitute for a randomized trial. A few more things worth knowing:<\/p>\n\n<ul>\n<li>The Alzheimer&#8217;s study&#8217;s population (Seventh-day Adventists) eats a healthier diet than the general public on average, which could partly explain the result even after statistical adjustment.<\/li>\n<li>That same study received partial funding from the American Egg Board \u2014 a real conflict of interest worth naming, even though the findings are consistent with other independent research on eggs and brain health.<\/li>\n<li>In the Australian study, daily egg consumption didn&#8217;t clear the bar for statistical significance \u2014 worth remembering before assuming &#8220;more must be better.&#8221;<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n<h2>What this means for you<\/h2>\n\n<p>If cholesterol fears have kept eggs off your plate, this is a reasonable point to reconsider that \u2014 especially in midlife, when protein needs go up and brain health becomes something you&#8217;re actively thinking about, not something you take for granted. A few eggs a week, as part of an overall solid diet, is what both studies actually support \u2014 not an egg-white omelet forever, and not three-a-day either.<\/p>\n\n<p>If you&#8217;re working on getting enough protein through midlife in general, <a href=\"https:\/\/healandflourish.com\/plant-vs-animal-protein-what-the-numbers-actually-show\/\">see how plant protein compares to whey for muscle<\/a> \u2014 eggs are one of the easiest complete-protein options to add back in.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>For decades, eggs got a bad reputation. Doctors, headlines, and diet books all pointed at the yolk and told you to watch your cholesterol \u2014 so an entire generation of us swapped whole eggs for egg-white omelets, or cut them out almost entirely. Here&#8217;s what you should know: two new studies published this year \u2014 [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":220042106,"featured_media":10452,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_wpcom_ai_launchpad_first_post":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"wds_primary_category":1401,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[1401],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-10451","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-nutrition"],"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pdTrGT-2Iz","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":10251,"url":"https:\/\/healandflourish.com\/vi\/plant-vs-animal-protein-what-the-numbers-actually-show\/","url_meta":{"origin":10451,"position":0},"title":"Plant vs. Animal Protein: What the Numbers Actually Show","author":"lienvangogh","date":"August 12, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"Plant protein is often described as \u201cincomplete\u201d or \u201clower quality\u201d than animal protein \u2014 a claim that tends to spark real debate. A detailed amino acid analysis out of Maastricht University gives us actual numbers to look at, instead of just opinions. What the researchers did Researchers analyzed the essential\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Sports Nutrition&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Sports Nutrition","link":"https:\/\/healandflourish.com\/category\/sports-nutrition\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Infographic titled Plant vs. Animal Protein Sources comparing lentils, chickpeas, beans, tofu, edamame, quinoa, seeds, nuts, seitan, chicken, beef, salmon, eggs, dairy, tuna, and pork.","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/healandflourish.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/heal-amp-flourish-6a7dd652daaec.png?fit=1024%2C1024&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/healandflourish.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/heal-amp-flourish-6a7dd652daaec.png?fit=1024%2C1024&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/healandflourish.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/heal-amp-flourish-6a7dd652daaec.png?fit=1024%2C1024&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/healandflourish.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/heal-amp-flourish-6a7dd652daaec.png?fit=1024%2C1024&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":6120,"url":"https:\/\/healandflourish.com\/vi\/embrace-winter-tips-to-boost-your-vitamin-d-levels\/","url_meta":{"origin":10451,"position":1},"title":"Embrace Winter: Tips to Boost Your Vitamin D Levels","author":"lienvangogh","date":"October 31, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"As October draws to a close, the crisp, cool air and shorter days are a reminder that we\u2019re transitioning from the vibrant colours of autumn into the quiet embrace of winter. With the leaves still turning beautiful shades of red, orange, and yellow, it\u2019s the perfect time to slow down\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Brain \/ Nervous System Support&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Brain \/ Nervous System Support","link":"https:\/\/healandflourish.com\/category\/nervous-system\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/healandflourish.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/image-25.png?fit=1024%2C768&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/healandflourish.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/image-25.png?fit=1024%2C768&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/healandflourish.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/image-25.png?fit=1024%2C768&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/healandflourish.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/image-25.png?fit=1024%2C768&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":10389,"url":"https:\/\/healandflourish.com\/vi\/does-coffee-protect-your-heart-and-help-you-live-longer\/","url_meta":{"origin":10451,"position":2},"title":"Coffee Protects Your Heart and Helps You Live Longer","author":"lienvangogh","date":"September 3, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"Yes \u2014 you heard that right. Coffee, the thing you maybe felt a little guilty reaching for before your feet even hit the floor, actually protects your heart and is linked to a longer life. Maybe you've also started wondering if it's part of why your heart races a little\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Energy Support&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Energy Support","link":"https:\/\/healandflourish.com\/category\/energy-support\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/healandflourish.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/charmil-gandhi-MK60jE_6zXU-unsplash.jpg?fit=675%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/healandflourish.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/charmil-gandhi-MK60jE_6zXU-unsplash.jpg?fit=675%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/healandflourish.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/charmil-gandhi-MK60jE_6zXU-unsplash.jpg?fit=675%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":10190,"url":"https:\/\/healandflourish.com\/vi\/gut-microbiome-mood-depression-anxiety-women\/","url_meta":{"origin":10451,"position":3},"title":"Your Gut and Your Mood: What 11 Trials Actually Show About Depression, Anxiety, and Hormonal Transitions","author":"lienvangogh","date":"August 3, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"Depression and anxiety are usually treated as conditions that live entirely in the head. But a growing body of research on the gut-brain connection keeps pointing to something more complicated: for many women, especially at certain points in their hormonal life, part of the story is happening in the gut.\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Brain \/ Nervous System Support&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Brain \/ Nervous System Support","link":"https:\/\/healandflourish.com\/category\/nervous-system\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"The Gut-Brain Connection; labels show brain, vagus nerve, neural pathways, pancreas, liver, gut, microbiota-derived metabolites, signal transmission, hormonal regulation, immune system signals, emotional state, cognitive function, digestion and absorption, immune response, and stress levels.","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/healandflourish.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/heal-amp-flourish-6a7dd280b0c23.png?fit=1024%2C1024&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/healandflourish.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/heal-amp-flourish-6a7dd280b0c23.png?fit=1024%2C1024&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/healandflourish.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/heal-amp-flourish-6a7dd280b0c23.png?fit=1024%2C1024&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/healandflourish.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/heal-amp-flourish-6a7dd280b0c23.png?fit=1024%2C1024&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":6525,"url":"https:\/\/healandflourish.com\/vi\/boost-menopausal-health-by-eating-30-different-plants-weekly\/","url_meta":{"origin":10451,"position":4},"title":"Boost menopausal health by eating 30 different plants weekly","author":"lienvangogh","date":"December 17, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"For years, women have been told that counting calories is the golden rule for managing health and weight. But groundbreaking science now points to a different, far more transformative focus: counting the diversity of plants you eat. Not only does this approach improve overall health, but it can also significantly\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Digestive Support&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Digestive Support","link":"https:\/\/healandflourish.com\/category\/digestive-support\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/healandflourish.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/image.png?fit=1024%2C768&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/healandflourish.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/image.png?fit=1024%2C768&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/healandflourish.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/image.png?fit=1024%2C768&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/healandflourish.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/image.png?fit=1024%2C768&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":10424,"url":"https:\/\/healandflourish.com\/vi\/why-high-intensity-aerobic-training-reverses-a-stiffening-heart\/","url_meta":{"origin":10451,"position":5},"title":"Why High-Intensity Aerobic Training Reverses a Stiffening Heart","author":"lienvangogh","date":"September 9, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"You've probably heard some version of this before: your heart stiffens as you age, the same way your joints do. It's just part of getting older. Not much you can do about it. Here's what that story gets wrong: a new study just proved you can do something about it\u2026","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/healandflourish.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/cardio_featured_image.png?fit=960%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/healandflourish.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/cardio_featured_image.png?fit=960%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/healandflourish.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/cardio_featured_image.png?fit=960%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/healandflourish.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/cardio_featured_image.png?fit=960%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/healandflourish.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/image.jpg?fit=3496%2C2730&ssl=1","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/healandflourish.com\/vi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10451","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/healandflourish.com\/vi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/healandflourish.com\/vi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/healandflourish.com\/vi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/220042106"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/healandflourish.com\/vi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=10451"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/healandflourish.com\/vi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10451\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":10460,"href":"https:\/\/healandflourish.com\/vi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10451\/revisions\/10460"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/healandflourish.com\/vi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/10452"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/healandflourish.com\/vi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=10451"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/healandflourish.com\/vi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=10451"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/healandflourish.com\/vi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=10451"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}