No extra risk for people with pre-diabetes or
type 2 diabetes
University of Sydney
University of Sydney
researchers aim to help clear up conflicting dietary advice around egg
consumption, as a new study finds eating up to 12 eggs per week for a year did
not increase cardiovascular risk factors in people with pre-diabetes and type 2
diabetes.
Published in the American
Journal of Clinical Nutrition today, the research extends on a
previous study that found similar results over a period of three months.
Led by Dr Nick Fuller
from the University's Boden Institute of Obesity, Nutrition, Exercise and
Eating Disorders at the Charles Perkins Centre, the research was conducted with
the University of Sydney's Sydney Medical School and the Royal Prince Alfred Hospital.
In the initial trial,
participants aimed to maintain their weight while embarking on a high-egg (12
eggs per week) or low-egg (less than two eggs per week) diet, with no
difference in cardiovascular risk markers identified at the end of three months.
The same participants then embarked on a weight loss diet for an additional three months, while continuing their high or low egg consumption. For a further six months -- up to 12 months in total -- participants were followed up by researchers and continued their high or low egg intake.
At all stages, both
groups showed no adverse changes in cardiovascular risk markers and achieved
equivalent weight loss -- regardless of their level of egg consumption, Dr
Fuller explained.
"Despite
differing advice around safe levels of egg consumption for people with
pre-diabetes and type 2 diabetes, our research indicates people do not need to
hold back from eating eggs if this is part of a healthy diet," Dr Fuller
said.
"A healthy diet
as prescribed in this study emphasised replacing saturated fats (such as
butter) with monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats (such as avocado and
olive oil)," he added.
The extended study
tracked a broad range of cardiovascular risk factors including cholesterol,
blood sugar and blood pressure, with no significant difference in results
between the high egg and low egg groups.
"While eggs
themselves are high in dietary cholesterol -- and people with type 2 diabetes
tend to have higher levels of the 'bad' low density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol
-- this study supports existing research that shows consumption of eggs has
little effect on the levels of cholesterol in the blood of the people eating
them," Dr Fuller explained.
Dr Fuller said the
findings of the study were important due to the potential health benefits of
eggs for people with pre-diabetes and type 2 diabetes, as well as the general
population.
"Eggs are a
source of protein and micronutrients that could support a range of health and
dietary factors including helping to regulate the intake of fat and
carbohydrate, eye and heart health, healthy blood vessels and healthy
pregnancies."
The different egg
diets also appeared to have no impact on weight, Dr Fuller said.
"Interestingly,
people on both the high egg and low egg diets lost an equivalent amount of
weight -- and continued to lose weight after the three month intended weight
loss phase had ended," he said.
