Starting Paleo

The Different Types of Coconut Oil

August 20, 2015 by Jackie Ritz 2 Comments

It’s no secret that coconut oil has been used for centuries in many different ways. There are so many different types of coconut oil, but most of them are 100 percent natural oil, and full of antioxidants and saturated fats—the good ones—that contain medium chain fatty acids (MDFAs) that provide so many good things:

MDFAs burn fast and are used as energy
MDFAs help to avoid weight gain
MDFAs will not raise cholesterol
MDFA have no risk of heart attack, strokes, or heart disease
MFDAs help to boost the metabolism

At one time it was very popular in the United States. But a strong propaganda campaign in the late 1970s promoted the use of corn oil and soy oil, and spread the message that because coconut oil was high in saturated fat it should be considered harmful for the human body. Fortunately today we understand the good benefits of the saturated fat content of coconut oil, and it is slowly being accepted as the powerfully healthy oil it is.

Coconut oil is used extensively in tropical countries like India, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Jamaica, New Guinea, Samoa, and the Philippines. These countries use it for:

Treatment for illnesses
Healing for injuries
Moisturizer for hair
Massage oil for babies
Even as a drink to boost the immune system

In this blog post I want to remind you of how healthy coconut oil is for you and your family. There are so many benefits to it, and so many ways to use it. We will take a closer look at some of these benefits and uses.

The Types of Coconut Oil

What kind of coconut oil is best to buy? How do I choose a coconut oil? These are the questions we all have when we begin to add this nutrient to our lives. Today there are many choices when it come to buying coconut oil. Let’s briefly review some of these choices.

There are two basic categories of coconut oil: those that are mass produced and need to be refined, and those that start with fresh coconut and are much less refined. All coconut oil is refined because oil doesn’t grow on a tree…coconuts do.

Virgin Coconut Oil

This is the least refined oil. It is coconut oil produced without starting with dried coconut (called “copra”) that has been removed from the shell and is inedible and needs more refining to produce coconut oil. The types of Virgin Coconut Oils include:

Extra-virgin coconut oil—There are no commonly understood or accepted definitions for “extra” virgin coconut oil, as there are in the olive oil industry. It is simply a marketing term and nothing else.
Virgin coconut oil produced using a “wet-milling” process whereby the oil is extracted from fresh coconut meat without drying the meat first. This is the best kind of coconut oil for you!
Virgin coconut oil produced by pressing the oil out of dried coconut. This is the most common type of coconut oil found online and in stores today.

Refined Coconut Oil

Copra-based refined coconut oils are called “RBD coconut oils” (refined, bleached, deodorized). The RBD refining process does nothing to alter the fatty acid profile of coconut oil, so all the medium chain fatty acids are kept intact. There are several types of refined coconut oils available:

As you examine your choices for coconut oil in the market today, your choice will largely be determined by how you intend to use the oil, and your budget. If you want the highest quality virgin coconut oil possible, this chart summarizes what is currently available in the market and rated on a scale of 1 to 10.

The Benefits of Coconut Oil

There really are so many healthful benefits to coconut oil. Because most of us very interested in filling our menus with as much real food and natural and organic products as possible, we have probably begun using coconut oil in our daily menus. It is solid like butter at room temperature, and it doesn’t break down or become rancid like many other oils. It even smells good to most people.

But there are many other uses as well. Let’s look closer at some of them.

As a cooking oil—It can be used for nearly any cooking use, including stove-top cooking and sauteéing, for stir frying, baking grain-free cookies, muffins, cakes, etc., and even for adding to your smoothies or using it to make home-made, sauces, and desserts.
In coffee or tea—I’d been hearing rumors about people putting butter in their coffee. Supposedly, this is called a Bulletproof Coffee. Why on earth would someone want to put butter in their coffee??? I took the plunge! And I must say, IT IS UN-friggin-BELIEVABLE! It came out frothy, smooth, and filling! I love my coffee in the morning, in fact, it’s one thing I have always said I will never give up. I’ve given up enough in my life…my coffee is staying!
As part of a daily cleansing and beauty regimen—It can be used making toothpaste or used in oil pulling. It’s a wonderful foundation for my all-purpose healing salve, I add it to the nightly detox bath my kids take, it is great to use in your shampoo or as shave lotion, and it can be used in home-made deodorant.
As nature’s perfect massage oil for babies and infants—Mothers around the world have been using coconut oil to massage their babies for centuries. It prevents so many irritating skin problems in babies, and keeps them soft and smooth as butter.
To help in weight loss—The medium-chain fatty acids in coconut oil help to get rid of excessive weight. It is easy to digest, and it help your thyroid and endocrine systems operate in good health. It increases the metabolic rate by removing stress on the pancreas, and lets you burn more energy and lose the weight. Many people trying to lose weight made and drink a “weight loss supplement” daily containing coconut oil, raw apple cider vinegar, and honey.

There are so many additional benefits to coconut oil that I highly recommend you doing your own additional research to discover ways you can incorporate it into your family’s lifestyle. You won’t regret it!

Where to buy coconut oil?

I purchase all my coconut oil through Tropical Traditions. For cooking, I prefer the Gold Label coconut oil, however if you do not like the taste of coconut, then I recommend you get the expeller pressed. For making soap and salves, I like to get the 100% pure coconut oil.

Resources

1. https://wellnessmama.com/2072/benefits-of-coconut-oil/

2. https://www.organicfacts.net/health-benefits/oils/health-benefits-of-coconut-oil.html

3. https://coconutoil.com/what-type-of-coconut-oil-is-best-how-to-choose-a-coconut-oil/

Paleo Jambalaya Soup

April 27, 2015 by Jackie Ritz 5 Comments

Today I welcome Maria from Ten at the Table to the blog! Maria is going to share a delicious and Paleo-friendly recipe for Paleo Jambalaya Soup! This is one of those recipes you can throw in the crockpot and go! I know you will love it!

Spring is in the air but the weather has no idea if it is winter or summer around here. One day it is in the forties and the next in the eighties. I just start thinking about putting away all the winter clothes and then a cold wet snap of weather comes right on through. And the next day the kids are asking about bringing out the pool. This Paleo Jambalaya Soup is a great meal to have on both days. The crock pot won’t heat up the house but provides a nice warm meal on the cool ones. And this Paleo twist on a Louisiana classic can clear the sinuses better than any allergy pill I’ve tried!

Warning: This soup is not for those sensitive to spicy things!

Paleo Crockpot Jambalaya Soup

Ingredients

5 cups chicken stock (make your own like this)
4 bell peppers (one of each color), chopped
1 large onion, chopped
1 large can of organic diced tomatoes (with the juice)
2 cloves garlic, diced
2 bay leafs
1 lb large shrimp, raw and de-veined
4 oz. chicken, diced
1 package spicy Andouille sausage
1/2-1 head of cauliflower, riced
2 cups okra (optional)
3 tbsp Cajun Seasoning
1/4 cup hot sauce

Instructions

Put the chopped peppers, onions, garlic, chicken, cajun seasoning, hot sauce, and bay leafs in the crockpot with the chicken stock. Set on low for 6 hours.
About 30 minutes before it’s finished, toss in the cut up sausages.
While this is cooking quickly make cauliflower rice by pulsing raw cauliflower in the food processor until it resembles rice.
For the last 20 minutes, add in the cauliflower rice and the raw shrimp. Note: You can choose to quickly steam the cauliflower rice in the microwave and serve the jambalaya OVER it as well.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Maria Alison is family-focused Christian, who’s finding new ways to feed her family quality home-cooked food on a budget. She understands how difficult it can be to prepare a meal from scratch with such a busy schedule. On Maria’s blog, Ten at the Table, you will find time saving recipes that are friendly to your budget and your health.

You can find Maria here:

https://www.facebook.com/tenatthetable

https://twitter.com/tenatthetable

https://www.pinterest.com/mariaalison159/

https://instagram.com/tenatthetable/

Spicy Paleo Lasagna

March 4, 2015 by Jackie Ritz 7 Comments

Today I’m welcoming Angie from Simplicity in Bloom to the blog to share with you all her delicious, mouth-watering, Paleo Lasagna recipe! Thank you, Angie, for sharing this dairy-free and gluten-free lasagna with my readers!

I love comfort foods and lasagna is one of the best! It’s always filling, satisfying and is actually very easy to make. One of my favorite things about lasagna is how many different ways it can be prepared. Various types of meat, different levels of spice, even adding vegetables can change a tried-and-true comfort food into to a dish that is sure to please any family.

I usually prefer spicy food so I’m always looking for ways to add a little zing! Recently I created a Paleo version of lasagna with lots of spice that I wanted to share. No worries if spicy food isn’t for you – I’ve added notes in the recipe to tone it down for those with a milder palate.

This recipe uses zucchini in place of traditional lasagna noodles and does not use cheese. My kids were a little skeptical when I told them about this particular version of lasagna but after the first bite, they were asking when we could have it again. BIG WIN!! Give this recipe a try. You will be pleasantly surprised!

Spicy Paleo Lasagna Recipe

INGREDIENTS:

2 lbs ground Italian sausage
1 medium yellow onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
(2) 14.5oz cans diced organic tomatoes (I used Fire Roasted for more zing)
6oz can tomato paste
24oz pasta sauce (I used a spicy variety)
¼ tsp cayenne pepper – optional
½ tsp Italian seasoning
½ tsp sea salt
½ tsp ground black pepper
2 Tbsp chopped fresh parsley
2 Tbsp chopped fresh basil
3 medium zucchini, sliced slightly thicker than a lasagna noodle

DIRECTIONS:

STEP ONE: Brown the meat in a large skillet. Add the diced onions and garlic. Once the meat is fully cooked, stir in the diced tomatoes, tomato paste, and seasonings. Simmer uncovered for 1 ½ hours, stirring occasionally until the sauce has thickened.

STEP TWO: While the sauce is simmering, peel the zucchini and slice it length-wise. Make each slice a little thicker than a lasagna noodle. A mandoline slicer would work well for this. I don’t have one so my slices were less than perfect. As it turns out, it didn’t matter. Still tasted great!

STEP THREE: Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Grease your favorite lasagna baking dish (I used a 9”x13” glass pan).

STEP FOUR: To assemble, spread a thin layer of meat sauce in the bottom of the baking dish. Add a layer of zucchini slices. Spread 1/3 of the remaining sauce over the zucchini. Repeat layers ending with meat sauce on top. Mine had three layers of zucchini slices and four layers of sauce including the sauce in the bottom of the baking dish.

STEP FIVE: Bake in preheated oven for 30 minutes.

Just to prepare you – without noodles and a cheese mixture, this lasagna doesn’t maintain a neat stacked form. It spreads out a bit on the plate. That did not cause a bit of concern – we had 100% clean plates! I hope your family enjoys this recipe as much as mine did. Simply yours!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Angie is a wife, mother of three teenagers, proud owner of two spunky black labs, graphic designer, and blogger at Simplicity in Bloom. She and her family enjoy an active lifestyle including sports, long walks with the dogs, and summer evenings in the backyard.

Because Angie feels that life has gotten too busy to appreciate “the here and now,” she is on a journey to find the simpler things. She enjoys sharing the new ideas and experiences she encounters on her journey. In her blog, Angie explores simplicity in many common areas: recipes, quick financial tips, thoughtful homemade gifts, home improvements, cleaning options, and using essential oils. Look for simplicity on Angie’s blog, Facebook page, Pinterest page, Twitter, and Instagram.

Get a Month’s Worth of Paleo Meal Plans for FREE!

February 25, 2015 by Jackie Ritz 14 Comments

Are you thinking about trying Paleo but you aren’t sure how to make it work for your family?

Are you on a budget and think that eating Paleo is too expensive?

Or maybe you have been eating Paleo for awhile and would like some more guidance and simplicity on meal planning.

You are in the right place!

I’ve created a WHOLE MONTH of budget-friendly meal plans for you! The best part? These are EASY to make. You will not be in the kitchen forever…maybe 30 minutes max to prep a healthy and whole meal for your family!

To get 4 weeks of meals plans PLUS a printable grocery list, sign up below by leaving your name and email.

You will get your first week of meal plans TODAY and then, one email a week, for four weeks! If you don’t see the form below, click here.

A Paleo Diet Meal Plan and Menu That Can Save Your Life

February 19, 2014 by Jackie Ritz 7 Comments

[box]This is a detailed meal plan for the paleo diet. What to eat, what to avoid and a sample paleo menu for one week.[/box]

The paleo diet is based on emulating the diet of our hunter-gatherer ancestors. It includes whole, unprocessed foods that resemble what they look like in nature.

Our ancestors were genetically the same as modern humans. They thrived eating such foods and were free of diseases like obesity, diabetes and heart disease.

Several studies suggest that this diet can lead to significant weight loss (without calorie counting) and major improvements in health.

Photo by Fit Bomb.

A Paleo Diet Meal Plan

There is no one “right” way to eat for everyone and paleolithic humans thrived on a variety of diets, depending on what was available at the time.

Some ate a low-carb diet high in animal foods, others a high-carb diet with lots of plants.

Consider this as a general guideline, not something written in stone. You can adapt all of this to your own personal needs and preferences.

The Basics

Eat: Meat, fish, eggs, vegetables, fruits, nuts, seeds, herbs, spices, healthy fats and oils.

Avoid: Processed foods, sugar, soft drinks, grains, most dairy products, legumes, artificial sweeteners, vegetable oils, margarine and trans fats.

This is a simplified paleo food pyramid:

Photo by Mark Sisson.

Avoid These Foods

Avoid these foods and ingredients:

Sugar and High Fructose Corn Syrup: Soft drinks, fruit juices, table sugar, agave nectar, candy, pastries, ice cream and many others.

Grains: Includes breads and pastas, wheat, spelt, rye, barley, etc.

Legumes: Beans, lentils and many more.

Dairy: Avoid most dairy, especially low-fat (some “versions” of paleo do include full-fat dairy like butter and cheese).

Vegetable Oils: Soybean oil, sunflower oil, cottonseed oil, corn oil, grapeseed oil, safflower oil and others.

Trans Fats: Found in margarine and various processed foods. Usually referred to as “hydrogenated” or “partially hydrogenated” oils.

Artificial Sweeteners: Aspartame, Sucralose, Cyclamates, Saccharin, Acesulfame Potassium. Use natural sweeteners instead.
Highly Processed Foods: Everything labelled “diet” or “low-fat” or has many weird ingredients. Includes artificial meal replacements.

A simple guideline: If it looks like it was made in a factory, don’t eat it!

If you want to avoid these ingredients, then you MUST read ingredients lists, even on foods that are labelled as “health foods.”

Foods to Eat on The Paleo Diet

Base your diet on these real, unprocessed paleo foods.

Meats: Beef, lamb, chicken, turkey, pork and others.

Fish and Seafood: Salmon, trout, haddock, shrimp, shellfish, etc. Choose wild-caught if you can.

Eggs: Choose free-range, pastured or Omega-3 enriched eggs.

Vegetables: Broccoli, kale, peppers, onions, carrots, tomatoes, etc.

Fruits: Apples, oranges, pears, avocados, strawberries, blueberries and more.

Tubers: Potatoes, sweet potatoes, yams, turnips, etc.

Nuts and Seeds: Almonds, macadamia nuts, walnuts, hazelnuts, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds and more

Healthy Fats and Oils: Lard, tallow, coconut oil, olive oil, avocado oil and others.
Salt and Spices: Sea salt, himalayan salt, garlic, turmeric, rosemary, etc.

Try to choose grass-fed, pasture raised and organic if you can afford it. If not, then just make sure to always go for the least processed option.

There are some things you can do to minimize cost while still eating high quality foods. Read a great article on this here.

Maybe Eat

In the past few years, the paleo community has evolved quite a bit.

There are now several different “versions” of the paleo diet. Many of them allow some modern foods that science has shown to be healthy.

This includes quality bacon from pasture raised pigs, grass-fed butter and even some non-gluten grains like rice.

Many people now think of paleo as a template to base your diet on, not necessarily as a strict set of rules that you must follow.

Sensible Indulgences

These are perfectly healthy in small amounts:

Wine: Quality red wine is high in antioxidants and beneficial nutrients.
Dark Chocolate: Choose one that has 70% or higher cocoa content. Quality dark chocolate is very nutritious and extremely healthy.

What to Drink When You’re Thirsty

When it comes to hydration, water should be your go-to beverage.

These aren’t exactly paleo, but most people drink them anyway:

Tea is very healthy and loaded with antioxidants and various beneficial compounds. Green tea is best.
Coffee is actually very high in antioxidants as well. Studies show that it has many health benefits.

You Should Watch This Video

This short video is a must-watch, it will teach you everything you need to know about the basics of paleo.

A Sample Paleo Menu For One Week

This sample menu contains a balanced amount of all the paleo foods.

Feel free to adjust this based on your own preferences.

Monday

Breakfast: Eggs and vegetables, fried in coconut oil. One piece of fruit.
Lunch: Chicken salad, with olive oil. Handful of nuts.

Dinner: Burgers (no bun), fried in butter, with vegetables and some salsa.

Tuesday

Breakfast: Bacon and eggs, with a piece of fruit.
Lunch: Leftover burgers from the night before.
Dinner: Salmon, fried in butter, with vegetables.

Wednesday

Breakfast: Meat with vegetables (leftovers from night before).
Lunch: Sandwich in a lettuce leaf, with meat and fresh vegetables.
Dinner: Ground beef stir fry, with vegetables. Some berries.

Thursday

Breakfast: Eggs and a fruit.
Lunch: Leftover stir fry from the night before. A handful of nuts.
Dinner: Fried pork, with vegetables.

Friday

Breakfast: Eggs and vegetables, fried in coconut oil.
Lunch: Chicken salad with olive oil. Handful of nuts.
Dinner: Steak with vegetables and sweet potatoes.

Saturday

Breakfast: Bacon and eggs, with a piece of fruit.
Lunch: Leftover steak and vegetables from the night before.
Dinner: Baked salmon with vegetables and avocado.

Sunday

Breakfast: Meat with vegetables (leftovers from night before).
Lunch: Sandwich in a lettuce leaf, with meat and fresh vegetables.
Dinner: Grilled chicken wings, with vegetables and salsa.

There is usually no need to track calories or macronutrients (protein, carbs or fat) on the paleo diet, at least not in the beginning.

However, if you need to lose a lot of weight then it is a good idea to cut carbs somewhat and limit your intake of nuts and potatoes.

If you’re a vegetarian, then read this article for some tips on how to do paleo without meat.

How to Make Your Restaurant Meals Paleo

It is not very difficult to make most restaurant meals paleo friendly.

Order a meat or fish-based main dish.
Get extra vegetables instead of bread or rice.
Ask them to cook your food in coconut oil, lard, olive oil or butter.

There’s an excellent article on eating paleo at restaurants here.

Simple Paleo Snacks

There really is no need to eat more than 3 meals per day, but if you get hungry then here are some paleo snacks that are simple and easily portable:

Baby carrots.
Hard boiled eggs.
A piece of fruit.
A handful of nuts.
Leftovers from the night before.
Apple slices with some almond butter.
A bowl of berries with some coconut cream.
Homemade beef jerky.

Simple Paleo Shopping List

There is an incredible variety of foods you can eat on the paleo diet.

This simple shopping list should give you an idea of how to get started.

Meat (beef, lamb, pork).
Poultry (chicken, turkey, etc).
Fish (salmon, trout, mackarel).
Eggs.
Fresh vegetables: greens, lettuce, tomatoes, peppers, carrots, onions, etc.
Frozen vegetables: broccoli, spinach, various mixes, etc.
Fruits: Apples, bananas, pears, oranges, avocado.
Berries: Strawberries, blueberries.
Nuts: Almonds, walnuts, macadamia nuts, hazelnuts.
Almond butter.
Coconut oil.
Olive oil.
Grass-fed butter.
Olives.
Sweet potatoes.
Condiments: Sea salt, pepper, turmeric, garlic, parsley, etc.

If you want a more advanced shopping guide, read this.

It is a good idea to clear all unhealthy temptations from your home, including sodas, pastries, cookies, crackers, bread, ice cream and cereals.

How to Find More Info

If you’re interested in more articles like this one, make sure to subscribe to free updates.

There is an entire world of information out there on paleo eating. Just google something like “paleo recipes” or “primal recipes” and you will find a ton of stuff.

These are some really excellent paleo recipe blogs:

*A Paleo Diet Menu Plan originally posted by Kris Gunnar and is republished with permission.*

Eggs and Cholesterol – How Many Eggs Can You Safely Eat?

February 7, 2014 by Jackie Ritz 5 Comments

Eggs are among the most nutritious foods on the planet.

Just imagine… a whole egg contains all the nutrients needed to turn a single cell into an entire baby chicken.

However, eggs have gotten a bad reputation because the yolks are high in cholesterol.

In fact, a single medium sized egg contains 186 mg of cholesterol, which is 62% of the recommended daily intake.

People believed that if you ate cholesterol, that it would raise cholesterol in the blood and contribute to heart disease.

But it turns out that it isn’t that simple. The more you eat of cholesterol, the less your body produces instead.

Let me explain how that works…

How Your Body Regulates Cholesterol Levels

Cholesterol is often seen as a negative word.

When we hear it, we automatically start thinking of medication, heart attacks and early death.

But the truth is that cholesterol is a very important part of the body. It is a structural molecule that is an essential part of every single cell membrane.

It is also used to make steroid hormones like testosterone, estrogen and cortisol.

Without cholesterol, we wouldn’t even exist.

Given how incredibly important cholesterol is, the body has evolved elaborate ways to ensure that we always have enough of it available.

Because getting cholesterol from the diet isn’t always an option, the liver actually produces cholesterol.

But when we eat a lot of cholesterol rich foods, the liver starts producing less (1, 2).

So the total amount of cholesterol in the body changes only very little (if at all), it is just coming from the diet instead of from the liver (3, 4).

Bottom Line: The liver produces large amounts of cholesterol. When we eat a lot of eggs (high in cholesterol), the liver produces less instead.

What Happens When People Eat Several Whole Eggs Per Day?

For many decades, people have been advised to limit their consumption of eggs, or at least of egg yolks (the white is mostly protein and is low in cholesterol).

Common recommendations include a maximum of 2-6 yolks per week. However, there really isn’t much scientific support for these limitations (5).

Luckily, we do have a number of excellent studies that can put our minds at ease.

In these studies, people are split into two groups… one group eats several (1-3) whole eggs per day, the other group eats something else (like egg substitutes) instead. Then the researchers follow the people for a number of weeks/months.

These studies show that:

In almost all cases, HDL (the “good”) cholesterol goes up (6, 7, 8).

Total and LDL cholesterol levels usually don’t change, but sometimes they increase slightly (9, 10, 11, 12).

Eating Omega-3 enriched eggs can lower blood triglycerides, another important risk factor (13, 14).
Blood levels of carotenoid antioxidants like Lutein and Zeaxanthine increase significantly (15, 16, 17).

It appears that the response to whole egg consumption depends on the individual.

In 70% of people, it has no effect on Total or LDL cholesterol. However, in 30% of people (termed “hyper responders”), these numbers do go up slightly (18).

That being said, I don’t think this is a problem. The studies show that eggs change the LDL particles from small, dense LDL to Large LDL (19, 20).

People who have predominantly large LDL particles have a lower risk of heart disease. So even if eggs cause mild increases in Total and LDL cholesterol levels, this is not a cause for concern (21, 22, 23).

The science is clear that up to 3 whole eggs per day are perfectly safe for healthy people who are trying to stay healthy.

Bottom Line: Eggs consistently raise HDL (the “good”) cholesterol. For 70% of people, there is no increase in Total or LDL cholesterol. There may be a mild increase in a benign subtype of LDL in some people.

Eggs and Heart Disease

Many studies have looked at egg consumption and the risk of heart disease.

All of these studies are so-called observational studies. In studies like these, large groups of people are followed for many years.

Then the researchers use statistical methods to figure out whether certain habits (like diet, smoking or exercise) are linked to either a decreased or increased risk of some disease.

These studies, some of which include hundreds of thousands of people, consistently show that people who eat whole eggs are no more likely to develop heart disease. Some of the studies even show a reduced risk of stroke (24, 25, 26).

However… one thing that is worth noting, is that these studies show that diabetics who eat eggs are at an increased risk of heart disease (27).

Whether the eggs are causing the increased risk in diabetics is not known. These types of studies can only show a correlation and it is possible that the diabetics who eat eggs are, on average, less health conscious than those who don’t.

This may also depend on the rest of the diet. On a low-carb diet (by far the best diet for diabetics), eggs lead to improvements in heart disease risk factors (28, 29).

Bottom Line: Many observational studies show that people who eat eggs don’t have an increased risk of heart disease, but some of the studies do show an increased risk in diabetics.

Eggs Have Plenty of Other Health Benefits Too

Let’s not forget that eggs are about more than just cholesterol… they’re also loaded with nutrients and have various other impressive benefits:

They’re high in Lutein and Zeaxanthine, antioxidants that reduce your risk of eye diseases like Macular Degeneration and Cataracts (30, 31).

They’re very high in Choline, a brain nutrient that over 90% of people are lacking in (32).

They’re high in quality animal protein, which has many benefits – including increased muscle mass and better bone health (33, 34).
Studies show that eggs increase satiety and help you lose fat (35, 36).

Eggs also taste amazing and are incredibly easy to prepare.

So even IF eggs were to have mild adverse effects on blood cholesterol (which they don’t), the benefits of consuming them would still far outweigh the negatives.

Bottom Line: Eggs are among the most nutritious foods on the planet. They contain important brain nutrients and powerful antioxidants that can protect the eyes.

How Much is Too Much?

Unfortunately, we don’t have studies where people are fed more than 3 eggs per day.

It is possible (although unlikely) that eating even more than that could have a detrimental effect on health. Eating more than 3 is uncharted territory, so to speak.

However… I did find an interesting case study (a study with only one individual). It was an 88 year old man who consumed 25 eggs per day.

He had normal cholesterol levels and was in very good health (37).

Of course, a study of one doesn’t prove anything, but it’s interesting nonetheless.

It’s also important to keep in mind that not all eggs are the same. Most eggs at the supermarket are from chickens that are raised in factories and fed grain-based feeds.

The healthiest eggs are Omega-3 enriched eggs, or eggs from hens that are raised on pasture. These eggs are much higher in Omega-3s and important fat-soluble vitamins (38, 39).

Overall, eating eggs is perfectly safe, even if you’re eating up to 3 whole eggs per day.

I personally eat 3-6 whole eggs per day (about 30-40 per week) and my health has never been better.

Given the incredible range of nutrients and powerful health benefits, quality eggs may just be the healthiest food on the planet.

*Eggs and Cholesterol originally posted by Kris Gunnar and is republished with permission.*