An Egg A Day Keeps The Doctor Away

Alright, so there is no such saying. It's just a riff off of the original, "an apple a day keeps the doctor away". Neither is really true, but the point of all this is is to discuss my relationship with eggs.

Unlike Julie Powell, I have always eaten and loved eggs: scrambled, eggs benedict, omelettes, quiches, sunny side-up, soft-boiled, egg salad sandwiches, and on and on. But, sometime in January 2009, Anthony and I learned that his cholesterol was a bit high. Not dangerously so, I mean, after all, he is a pretty healthy young man. But, we did consume a lot of eggs.




Eggs while high in cholesterol (in the yolk) are also one of the healthiest foods out there. They are not high in calories, they are full of really important protein that gives you long-lasting energy and improved brain functions, they are an excellent source of easily-absorbed iron, and the list goes on. (Although, after a quick inspection of the "Health Care Professionals" section of www.eggs.ca, perhaps the cholesterol in the egg yolks are not as bad as I thought. Further inspection is required. Doo doo doo doo doo doo, Inspector Gadget!) Regardless, the point is that they are healthy and as long as you're not a vegan, you should eat them (not the vegans, the eggs).

Now, for quite a while now, I can't get this one piece of nutritional advice I read in a magazine (probably Glamour) about eggs: eating six whole eggs a week is healthy, but you should not go over this amount. Yes, advice found in mags is often questionable; however, there is a lot of valuable tips as well. To me, I think eight whole eggs a week works best. Think about it, most people (including myself) usually eat two eggs at a time when they have eggs. Not one or three (I personally couldn't stomach three eggs at once), but two. So if I eat eight whole eggs a week, two at a time, once a day, that is four days a week with eggs, and three days off. That would describe me. Although I have never actually set the six eggs/week goal on the fridge or something, I would keep it in my head as a very lofty goal that I may or may not reach. Eight eggs, however, was something I could do.

I'm not one for diets or ridiculously constrictive eating habits. I love good food to much for that, I value my personal health and happiness too much. But, I do recognize the value of diversity in your daily nutrition and diet. That is part of the reason I try to at least have two days a week when I don't eat eggs. On those days, I'll have oatmeal with milk and honey, and maybe some fruit and yogurt instead. Or, baked beans and toast. I remember a friend suggesting a tofu scramble as a high-protein, hearty, and healthy breakfast alternative, but I never got around to making it. I bought the tofu and then I never ate it. I'm the type of person who has to have a big breakfast or else I just get hungry right away, and if I don't eat breakfast, I'm miserable. So if any of my few cyber-readers out there has any egg-less breakfast suggestions that are easy and filling, send me your thoughts.

And in case you're wondering, yes, I did have eggs for breakfast today.