SUMMARY
Egg: Concepts, analyses and controversies in the human health
Cholesterol rich-foods consumption has been related as a causing factor for heart ischemic disease. Because the high cholesterol content of the yolk, the egg consumption has been decreased in spite of it, egg is a complete food, rich in many nutrients, and economically accessible. The cholesterol content in egg yolk has also important properties for the human organism. The present work had the objective to review the scientific literature about egg’s cholesterol, describing the possible consequences on the human health and wellbeing, its effect when they are enriched, and the chemical composition in relation to its lipidic profile. Information for this review was collected through national and international inquiries. According to this information, most of the studies on egg consumption are not related to the risk of cardiopathies in healthy people. Also, in people with diabetes mellitus, there is scarce evidence to drawn any conclusion about egg consumption and cardiopathies. Omega-3 egg enrichment presumably possesses a protective effect against cancer, despite its cholesterol content remains unaltered. Many of the Food Chemical Composition Tables contain different values on egg’s fat composition, so it should be continuously update to reduce these discrepancies. Also, more studies on omega-3 enriched eggs are necessary for deeper conclusions on their cardio-protective effect.

Key words: Cholesterol in egg, heart diseases, diabetes mellitus, cancer, omega-3 fatty acid.



Recibido: 10/07/2006
Aceptado: 17/12/2006

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