Could regular egg consumption reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease-related death in older adults?

Feb 05, 2025
Good news for egg lovers! Regular egg consumption may reduce the risk of cardiovascular-related death in healthy older adults. Source: Getty Images.

Although eggs have long been linked to concerns about heart health and cardiovascular disease, recent research has shown that regular egg consumption may actually reduce the risk of cardiovascular-related death in healthy older adults.

Researchers from Monash University found that for relatively healthy older adults, consuming eggs 1-6 times per week was associated with a lower risk of all-cause mortality (death from any cause) and CVD mortality compared to those who rarely or never eat eggs.

As part of the study, researchers had 8756 adults aged 70 years or older report the frequency of their total egg consumption.

The guidelines for reporting were as follows:

  • never/infrequently (rarely/never, or 1-2 times/month)
  • weekly (1-6 times/week)
  • and daily (daily/several times per day)

Researchers found that compared to older adults who never or infrequently ate eggs (up to to twice a month), those who ate eggs 1-6 times a week had a 15 per cent lower risk of death from any cause, and a 29 per cent lower risk of cardiovascular disease-related death.

First author Holly Wild, a PhD candidate and lecturer from the Monash University School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, highlighted the nutritional benefits of eggs, particularly for older adults.

“Eggs are a nutrient-dense food, they are a rich source of protein and a good source of essential nutrients, such as B vitamins, folate, unsaturated fatty acids, fat-soluble vitamins (E, D, A, and K), choline, and numerous minerals and trace elements,” Wild said.

“Eggs are also an accessible source of protein and nutrition in older adults, with research suggesting that they are the preferred source of protein for older adults who might be experiencing age-related physical and sensory decline.

“Our results suggest that eating up to six eggs a week may reduce the risk of death from all causes and cardiovascular related diseases in older adults. These findings may be beneficial in the development of evidence-based dietary guidelines for older adults.”

Wild and her team also explored the relationship between egg consumption and mortality across different levels of diet quality (low, moderate, high), finding “that older adults with a moderate to high diet quality reported a 33 per cent and 44 per cent lower risk of CVD-related death, suggesting that the addition of eggs to moderate and high-quality diets may improve longevity.”

“Previous research has observed a higher risk of mortality with egg consumption for those who have high cholesterol. For this reason, we also explored the association between egg consumption and mortality in people with and without dyslipidemia (clinically diagnosed high cholesterol),” Wild said.

“We found a 27 per cent lower risk of CVD-related death for participants with dyslipidemia who consumed eggs weekly, compared to their counterparts that consumed eggs rarely or never, suggesting that in this study cohort, the presence of dyslipidemia does not influence the risk associated with egg consumption.”

Both the Australian Dietary Guidelines and the American Heart Association (AHA) recommend that adults with normal cholesterol can eat up to seven eggs a week, while some European countries suggest limiting egg consumption to 3-4 eggs per week. The AHA also supports up to two eggs per day for older adults with normal cholesterol levels.

 

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