Wednesday March 20, 2002
Press Release
SOURCE: American Egg Board
Just in Time for Easter, Eggs Forecast is Sunny-Side Up: Consumption Up 11%, Healthy Benefits on the Rise, American Heart Association has 'Change of Heart' on Eggs
Putting Humpty Dumpty Back Together Again at a New York Celebration
NEW YORK, March 20 /PRNewswire/ -- Just in time for Easter, the most popular and biggest selling time of the year for eggs, a half dozen classic sitcom moms join leading scientists and egg industry representatives at a Central Park ``Eggstravaganza'' to celebrate the good news about eggs -- the comeback kid of nutritious foods. Egg consumption is up a healthy 11 percent, a wealth of new research and scientific studies have prompted changes in the American Heart Association's (AHA) 30-year stance on eggs, and new research points to nutrients contained in eggs that have important health benefits. At today's gala celebration, six of America's best-known and beloved television moms, Barbara Billingsley (Leave It to Beaver), Betty Buckley (Eight is Enough), Beverly Garland (My Three Sons), Shirley Jones (Partridge Family), June Lockhart (Lassie/Lost in Space) and Marion Ross (Happy Days) symbolically returned eggs to their rightful place in America's hearts by putting a giant- sized Humpty Dumpty back together again. ``Maybe mom really did know best when she told her TV families, 'eat your eggs, they're good for you,' '' quipped Shirley Jones. ``Eggs are back and, like us, they're better than ever.''
Consumption Up
This year, egg consumption in America will be an estimated 259.4 per person, an 11 percent increase since a low of 233.5 in 1991. The high point for per capita consumption was in 1945 with 402 eggs. In 1972, when the AHA guidelines restricting eggs in the diet were first issued, per capita egg consumption was 304.
``Americans have never really abandoned their love affair with the egg -- whether it's scrambled, fried or sunny side up,'' says Dolph Baker, Chairman of the American Egg Board. ``Eggs taste good, they're affordable, easy to digest and easy to prepare. Now, the latest research not only vindicates eggs but shows they may even have more health benefits than previously thought.''
Science Vindicates the Egg
In addition to increased consumption, today's event commemorates the American Heart Associations' decision to allow an egg a day back in the American diet. The AHA's landmark decision ended a 30-year campaign that singled out eggs and limited consumption to no more than three per week. The organization now says it's okay for healthy Americans to eat an egg a day. ``The AHA's change of heart about eggs acknowledges more than two decades of research showing that egg consumption should not be a concern for the majority of people. In fact, most dietary cholesterol consumed by Americans comes from foods that, unlike eggs, are high in saturated fats,'' says Donald J. McNamara, Ph.D., Executive Director of the Egg Nutrition Center. ``We're happy to share the good news about eggs and hope to spread the word to Americans, many of whom have been unnecessarily avoiding an affordable, nutritious food that they love.''
``Rather than avoiding eggs, consumers can now include more eggs in their diet if they limit the amount of other foods containing dietary cholesterol, says Rebecca Mullis, Ph.D., R.D., Chair, Food and Nutrition Department, University of Georgia and a member of the AHA nutrition committee. ''With high-quality protein, 13 essential vitamins and minerals, significant amounts of vitamin B-12, vitamin D and folate, eggs make a nutritious and valuable contribution to the American diet. In addition, new research shows that eggs contain compounds that may help reduce age-related macular degeneration and improve long-term memory function. According to a more recent study, a compound found in eggs may even contribute to reducing risk for heart disease.``
Scientific and nutrition experts applaud the AHA's change of guidelines on eggs asserting that the abundance of research in the area of cholesterol and heart disease vindicates eggs' role in a healthy diet. Scientists point to a landmark Harvard University (Journal of the American Medical Association, April 1999) study, among others, which concluded that one egg a day did not have a significant impact on the risk of coronary heart disease. Research now shows that saturated fat and trans fat are the more serious contributors to heart disease.
New Research Says Eggs Better Than Ever
A study published in the October 2000 Supplement to the Journal of the American College of Nutrition suggests that choline, an essential ingredient found abundantly in eggs and milk, when taken during pregnancy, may be key in the development of an infant's memory function and may improve memory capability later in life. A separate study in the same publication showed that two carotenoids, lutein and zeaxanthin, found in eggs and certain vegetables, significantly reduce the risk of cataracts and age-related macular degeneration. Some observational studies have shown that generous intakes of these carotenoids reduce the risk of cataracts up to 20 percent and age-related macular degeneration up to 40 percent.
Ironically, The American Heart Association's journal Circulation (June 2001), published research showing that lutein, a nutrient found in egg yolks, may help to reduce the risk of heart disease. In this study of 480 middle-aged men and women, those with the highest blood levels of lutein showed the least thickening in their artery walls over an 18-month period. Research has shown lutein from egg yolks is better absorbed by the body than from a comparable serving of vegetables.
For more information about eggs and the Eggstravaganza, visit
http://www.aeb.org .
Contact: Barbara King of Aronow & Pollock Communications, Inc.,
+1-212-941-1414
SOURCE: American Egg Board
http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/020320/nyw001_2.html
Heart Association has 'Change of Heart' on Eggs
I'm with you too. I eat 15 to 20 eggs a week and my blood levels are good. I have never had a problem with the incredible eatable egg... Ellen
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