We are all encouraged to eat a healthy, balanced diet which is low in saturated fat.

This can include up to six eggs a week according to the NZ Nutrition Foundation www.nutritionfoundation.org.nz

This amount can be eaten as one egg most days, or two eggs served three times a week.

Eggs & Cholesterol: A brief history

In the past, it was thought eating foods containing cholesterol would increase the concentration of cholesterol in the blood. High blood cholesterol is linked to an increased risk of heart disease. Cholesterol is only found in animal products, and this led to people altering the types of food they consumed.

Recent research has shown that it is in fact the saturated fat in our food that increases and affects cholesterol, increasing both total and LDL (‘bad’) levels.

Studies have shown eating up to six eggs a week provides nutritional benefits without increasing the risk of heart disease. (The New Zealand Heart Foundation recommends that people at high risk of heart disease limit their intake of eggs to three per week as part of a diet low in saturated fat).