Wellness Tips
Your guide for achieving optimal health ...
To help you on your wellness journey, sign up for your weekly wellness tip and receive a free healthy recipe as a thank you!
email:
think
breathe
drink
eat
sleep
exercise
other
tips archive
about Vreni Gurd
weblog
HLC Resources
Eat
Eggs are healthy and diet sodas are notSlowly the evidence is mounting that there is absolutely no need to be afraid of eating eggs, despite the fact that they are high in cholesterol. Hopefully soon the mainstream medical establishment will go that one step further and acknowledge that there is no association between cholesterol levels and heart disease, as is blatantly obvious in the graph at the end of this entertaining article by Dr. Malcolm Kendrick comparing percent-population with high cholesterol and death rates from CHD in various countries. That said, eating cholesterol does not seem to increase cholesterol levels in the body, and eggs are an extremely nutritious food, so there is no harm in eating them every day if you want to. Hard-boiled eggs can be packed along as a healthy protein snack - much healthier than those processed protein bars that contain a list of chemicals a mile long, and just as convenient, and also much healthier than protein shakes made from protein-isolate. So, enjoy your eggs!
The other interesting study that was publicized this week noted an association between soda pop, both diet and regular, and metabolic syndrome and heart disease. The association for regular pop is a no-brainer, but that diet pop is also problematic is surprising, as diet pop contains no sugar nor high fructose corn syrup, so why would such an association exist? Perhaps part of the reason for the association is that when the body detects a sweet taste it expects carbohydrate nutrition, and when the gut finds none from the diet drink, the brain sends a message to make you hungry so that you will eat more food in the hopes of getting some nutrition. Consequently, eating "diet foods" may result in consuming more calories. The second possibility which has been pointed out by others that have tried to explain the surprising results, is that frequently those that drink diet pop also eat fast or processed food, and it is the fast or processed food that is creating the association with heart disease and metabolic syndrome. A third potential reason that I have not seen suggested anywhere but comes to my mind, is that aspartame is a toxin and the products it degrades into are also toxins, which may cause systemic inflammation in the body. Inflammation of the arteries is an integral part of the cardiovascular disease process, so consuming foods that cause an inflammatory response would probably be associated with heart disease. The toxin theory does not explain the association with metabolic syndrome however.
Related Tips
High cholesterol does NOT cause heart disease
Saturated fat, the misunderstood nutrient
Artificial sweeteners
Dealing with inflammation and inflammatory conditions
Cardiovascular disease
Qureshi AI et al. Regular egg consumption does not increase the risk of stroke and cardiovascular diseases. Med Sci Monit. 2007 Jan;13(1):CR1-8. Epub 2006 Dec 18.
Kritchevsky SB A review of scientific research and recommendations regarding eggs. J Am Coll Nutr. 2004 Dec;23(6 Suppl):596S-600S.
Fernandez ML. Dietary cholesterol provided by eggs and plasma lipoproteins in healthy populations. Curr Opin Clin Nutr Metab Care. 2006 Jan;9(1):8-12.
Greene CM et al. Maintenance of the LDL cholesterol:HDL cholesterol ratio in an elderly population given a dietary cholesterol challenge. J Nutr. 2005 Dec;135(12):2793-8.
Herron KL et al. High intake of cholesterol results in less atherogenic low-density lipoprotein particles in men and women independent of response classification. Metabolism. 2004 Jun;53(6):823-30.
Ballesteros MN, et al. Dietary cholesterol does not increase biomarkers for chronic disease in a pediatric population from northern Mexico. Am J Clin Nutr. 2004 Oct;80(4):855-61.
Ravnskov U. The questionable role of saturated and polyunsaturated fatty acids in cardiovascular disease. J Clin Epidemiol. 1998 Jun;51(6):443-60.
Ravi Dhingra MD et al. Soft Drink Consumption and Risk of Developing Cardiometabolic Risk Factors and the Metabolic Syndrome in Middle-Aged Adults in the Community Circulation Published online before print July 23, 2007
Bray GA et al. Consumption of high-fructose corn syrup in beverages may play a role in the epidemic of obesity. Am J Clin Nutr. 2004 Apr;79(4):537-43.
Dubois L et al. Regular sugar-sweetened beverage consumption between meals increases risk of overweight among preschool-aged children. J Am Diet Assoc. 2007 Jun;107(6):924-34; discussion 934-5.
Lavin JH The effect of sucrose- and aspartame-sweetened drinks on energy intake, hunger and food choice of female, moderately restrained eaters. Int J Obes Relat Metab Disord. 1997 Jan;21(1):37-42.
T L Davidson1 et al. A Pavlovian approach to the problem of obesity International Journal of Obesity July 2004, Volume 28, Number 7, Pages 933-935.
Copyright 2007 Vreni Gurd