I was wondering if anyone could clear up the health issues with egg whites vs yolks. I’ve been following a Berardi recipe that calls for 6 egg whites and 1 whole egg, but it doesn’t really fill me up, and since I need more calories I was thinking of adding in more yolk to up the protein count and make it more calorie dense.
I’m sure Dr B has a good reason for recommending just egg whites, but are yolks really the devil? I heard that the cholesterol dangers were overstated
Eat your egg yolks, this has been debated to death. In short, high cholesterol doesn’t necessarily mean you are unhealthy.
it doesn’t? sorry but that goes against everything I’ve ever heard ever. Not that I’m questioning you, but why does someone like John Berardi then recommend using egg whites instead?
Yolks are where its at dude. Personally if you�??re not eating the yolks there’s no point in eating the egg IMHO. Eggs got a bad rap after all the cholesterol hysteria from a few years back. But keep in mind that egg cholesterol is unsaturated and the body doesn’t absorb it all anyway.
Most of the early studies that showed egg yolks were unhealthy have since been proven to have been severely flawed because they used dried yolks in their tests rather than fresh yolks and took into account other sterols in the eggs that skewed the results.
I don�??t think you can get a definitive answer on whether yolks or good or bad, but I think most dieticians have moved into the camp that egg yolks at worst pose only a slight risk to elevating your bad cholesterol and at best are probably one of the most nutrient rich foods you can eat. in fact it’s probably one of the best bangs for you buck when it comes to protein and other essential nutrients
[quote]Tube wrote:
it doesn’t? sorry but that goes against everything I’ve ever heard ever. Not that I’m questioning you, but why does someone like John Berardi then recommend using egg whites instead?[/quote]
There is no such thing as the diet. John knows better than to claim something works for everyone.
Unless you’re a pro in a pre-contest period, don’t worry about the yolks.
[quote]Tube wrote:
it doesn’t? sorry but that goes against everything I’ve ever heard ever. Not that I’m questioning you, but why does someone like John Berardi then recommend using egg whites instead?[/quote]
At some point, you’ll just have to accept that everything you’ve been told about egg yolks was wrong. I’ll bet “they” forgot to tell you that half of an egg’s protein, all of its vitamins, and a near-perfect proportion of fats are in that same yolk.
If you want adequate levels of testosterone…eat cholesterol containing foods.
If you want permeable cell membranes (you do)…eat cholesterol.
If you want to combat inflammation (you do)…eat cholesterol.
If you want your body to produce ALL steroid hormones…yup, eat cholesterol.
If you want Vitamin D to be converted from the sun…eat cholesterol.
Additionally, most foods that are high in cholesterol generally happen to be high in bioavailable versions of Vitamins A and D and contain high levels of fat (which is also a good thing, considering every single cell out of the seventy-something trillion of them is comprised of around 50% fat).
Furthermore, look at the remaining nutrient profiles of said foods…once again, these typically are the most nutrient dense foods. Mother Nature or God, if you wish, know better than politically influenced, cubicle dieticians that swear that cholesterol is Satan reincarnate. They go as far to tell you to cut it out of your diet when:
A)Even if you completely eliminated it (virtually impossible), you wouldn’t lower your total cholesterol levels enough to fit within the continually lowering “acceptable levels.”
B)Even when taking medication prescribed, it still isn’t usually enough to lower it to this arbitrary numbers.
C)The commercials expose an ugly truth…look at the disclaimer, “Reducing cholesterol has NOT been shown to reduce risk of heart attack and stroke.” So why in the hell should you take medications as well as be an anal bastard trying to lower dietary cholesterol when it hasn’t been shown to eliminate the risk of dying by these same diseases supposedly eliminated by these actions?
But then again…these are the same people that claim that there are two types of cholesterol. LDL and HDL and carriers OF CHOLESTEROL…not different types, Jesus you’d think that they would’ve picked up on this in Biochemistry 101 or equal level Nutritional classes.
What else is important about the yolks? How about calcium and phosphorus? ONE yolk will do wonders for your daily intake of these ever important minerals.
As for the whites…well they have protein…that’s only bioavailable when cooked (because of trypsin inhibitors naturally present).
[quote]Tube wrote:
it doesn’t? sorry but that goes against everything I’ve ever heard ever. Not that I’m questioning you, but why does someone like John Berardi then recommend using egg whites instead?[/quote]
Dude, Berardi is not God. At some point you’re going to have to take all the info in this world and make your own decisions.
I think there are no bad foods really. Except maybe like dounts, cookies, pastries, etc which I don’t even consider food.
Personally, I feel eggs are one of the best protein sources out there. I eat dozens weekly. I also eat them raw which “they” say is a big no-no.
You will be hard pressed to find natural, whole food sources of protein that don’t have fat attached to it. Why? maybe that’s the way it was intended to be… (go figure)
The bulk of my calories also come from fat and protein with limited carbs. According to the masses, I’m doing it all wrong. Do you see my point?
One time I went to the doctor, and he told me quote to “stop eating protein and definitely stop lifting weights.” I shit you not. I almost laughed in his face. He was also a granola/tofu eating, cardio type of guy.
I also eat lots of red meat. That may be “bad” for me in some people’s eyes.
[quote]spurlock wrote:
If you want adequate levels of testosterone…eat cholesterol containing foods.
If you want permeable cell membranes (you do)…eat cholesterol.
If you want to combat inflammation (you do)…eat cholesterol.
If you want your body to produce ALL steroid hormones…yup, eat cholesterol.
If you want Vitamin D to be converted from the sun…eat cholesterol.
Additionally, most foods that are high in cholesterol generally happen to be high in bioavailable versions of Vitamins A and D and contain high levels of fat (which is also a good thing, considering every single cell out of the seventy-something trillion of them is comprised of around 50% fat).
Furthermore, look at the remaining nutrient profiles of said foods…once again, these typically are the most nutrient dense foods. Mother Nature or God, if you wish, know better than politically influenced, cubicle dieticians that swear that cholesterol is Satan reincarnate. They go as far to tell you to cut it out of your diet when:
A)Even if you completely eliminated it (virtually impossible), you wouldn’t lower your total cholesterol levels enough to fit within the continually lowering “acceptable levels.”
B)Even when taking medication prescribed, it still isn’t usually enough to lower it to this arbitrary numbers.
C)The commercials expose an ugly truth…look at the disclaimer, “Reducing cholesterol has NOT been shown to reduce risk of heart attack and stroke.” So why in the hell should you take medications as well as be an anal bastard trying to lower dietary cholesterol when it hasn’t been shown to eliminate the risk of dying by these same diseases supposedly eliminated by these actions?
But then again…these are the same people that claim that there are two types of cholesterol. LDL and HDL and carriers OF CHOLESTEROL…not different types, Jesus you’d think that they would’ve picked up on this in Biochemistry 101 or equal level Nutritional classes.
What else is important about the yolks? How about calcium and phosphorus? ONE yolk will do wonders for your daily intake of these ever important minerals.
As for the whites…well they have protein…that’s only bioavailable when cooked (because of trypsin inhibitors naturally present).[/quote]
Excellent post. I’ve been telling people for years to eat their yolks. Don’t get me wrong I also get a ton of olive oil, fish oil, etc. But I think getting plenty of saturates is important.
Cholesterol is in fact the precursor to testosterone. So good luck wiping out your manhood.
The last time I had my test levels checked, it was 1274 ng/dl. All natural, no drugs, no prohormones.
A testament to eating the yolks:
I’m a 19 y/o college football player who downs ~1,000,000 eggs a day. Last summer when bloodwork was performed my cholesterol levels were at 170, and that was at a time when I still bought into the yolk-phobia and ate a lot of whites with only a little yolk here and there.
Over the course of this year though, I’ve been all about the yolk and my numbers dropped to 142. That’s with roughly the same amount of exercise, almonds/walnuts consumption, fish oil consumption, and olive oil consumption, and a slight increase in other fatty foods such as cheese (gasp!.
long live the yolks.
Thank you, you guys are absolutely awesome and this has helped me out immensely.
This must be the only site that promotes yolks as being good for you. Everywhere else says it’s bad. lol
[quote]bobo86 wrote:
This must be the only site that promotes yolks as being good for you. Everywhere else says it’s bad. lol[/quote]
Shows how much “they” know. There are even some “experts” saying “don’t eat egg whites, they’re bad for you, eat yolks only!”
The whole “yolks are teh dev1l!1!!!” garbage came from the fat scare in the 80’s and 90’s.
When I tell people they need cholesterol for good health they get a dumb look on their face and say “but that’s not what I read” or “that’s not what my doctor says” and they never, ever, will read the documentation I give them. The very same information that DR. Berardi and all the other knowledgeable nutritionists here cite.
If I recall correctly, only approximately 30% of the human population cannot regulate cholesterol normally. Those are the only people who need consume a little less. Everyone else will regulate via the liver. That’s one of its functions.
Also, a diet that contains enough fiber will help control cholesterol. Insoluble fiber, I believe, is the kind that binds with excess cholesterol in the gut. Guess what, most people who have high cholesterol probably eat low-fiber, sugary diets or are one of those people who don’t regulate normally who are overconsuming animal-based fats.
My mother was put on a brand name cholesterol-reducing medication by her f’ing doctor. It didn’t work, even after many months on it. I put her on fish and flax oil, along with a quality fiber supplement (Udo’s Choice) and within 3 months her serum cholesterol and triglycerides dropped by 30-50% each. Almost 50%! Her new doctor freaked out and couldn’t believe that it was simply nutrition that had made the change.
So, I tell my mom to eat the yolks of eggs, in moderation, and to not worry about it so much. Of course, getting her to keep taking fish oil, quality protein, and fiber is tough as she just doesn’t realize how important it is. But she’s slowly getting into the habit.
The point?: eat the yolks, just not a dozen at a time.
also if you don’t consume fat with any protein you don’t absorb it well(yokes), also take vitamin C with eggs helps get all the protein goodness…
1 Yolk to 4 whites?
[quote]Tube wrote:
it doesn’t? sorry but that goes against everything I’ve ever heard ever. Not that I’m questioning you, but why does someone like John Berardi then recommend using egg whites instead?[/quote]
Why dont you just ask him? Id imagine he would give you a decent answer as to why his own recipes are the way they are. Nor do i think he has a problem with egg yolks. Ofcourse there is an upper limit, but i doubt you will hit it. Most people would get sick of eggs first.
Why use egg whites in cooking rather then whole eggs? Texture, control of macronutrients ie: in dieting.
[quote]FightingScott wrote:
1 Yolk to 4 whites? [/quote]
Seriously if you’re going to waste the best part of the egg, why buy them? Or all you fat/cholesterol-phobes send your yolks to me. 
[quote]greekdawg wrote:
FightingScott wrote:
1 Yolk to 4 whites?
Seriously if you’re going to waste the best part of the egg, why buy them? Or all you fat/cholesterol-phobes send your yolks to me. :)[/quote]
For the past 4 months I’ve been buying pasteurized egg yolks in cartons. I use 1 real egg and 1 cup of whites to make an omelet. You can try your best to get Organic Valley to mail you the yolks they might be throwing away.
I wouldn’t call ConAgra. They probably already put their unused yolks into cake mix or use the calories from the yolks to fuel their underground Neo-Nazi war factories that are currently producing Cyborg Stormtroopers, biological weapons, and fluoride activated, mind controlling chemical agents that, when combined with your drinking water, cause you to purchase more products from the evil empire of ConAgra.
The whole idea of “high” cholesterol is a theory with serious critics who are more than qualified. For the record, HDL and LDL indeed all lipoproteins ARE NOT cholesterol at all. There is no such thing as good and bad cholesterol or good or bad lipoproteins. They’re all essential nutrients. IT is processed refined shitty “food” that makes people unhealthy, not the traditional foods that have been eaten since time immemorial.
According to modern views, beef, pork and eggs will kill you, the frickin sun will give you cancer and drugs are the messiah. We’ve come a long way baby.
Good thread. All this egg whites only stuff is silly, and eggs taste nice because of the yolk! the ‘Cholesterol is bad’ notion has been challenged again and again over the years - check the name prof. john yudkin, even in the 50’s there was reason to doubt the fears being developed about fat and cholesterol.
There have been plenty since, despite the hype in the 80’s. Now if you’re obese and you start eating pounds of red meat, eggs and milk it’ll just make you fatter, as would extra servings of donuts, so that’s when you may want to cut down.
When it comes to eggs, just eat the egg. Eggs whites to yolks? that’s 1:1