Eggs, they are an important source of protein, but any doctor will
tell you that too much eggs give you high cholesterol which leads to coronary
artery disease. But the Belize Poultry Association today put the egg before
the chicken and held a special event to say, eggs are good for you. Is it just
self promotion or is it genuine health science? Jacqueline Godwin visited to
find out more.
Jacqueline Godwin Reporting,
The Table Egg Symposium is a promotional campaign by the Belize Poultry Association
to promote egg as a valuable source of nutrition.
Orlando Habet, Manager – Belize Poultry Association
“In the late 70s, early 80s there was some information that came out
and then an article that was published in the 1984 by the Times Magazine and
they had the egg on the front page with two eggs as the eyes on a little platter
and at the bottom for the mouth they had a moustache made of bacon and the big
word cholesterol.”
The bad rap triggered a worldwide decline by almost sixty percent in the consumption
of eggs. Subsequent research has dispelled that myth that eggs are harmful to
your health.
Orlando Habet,
“All information since then to now is that the cholesterol in eggs 
is 200 to 210 grams for a large egg does not necessarily cause the problems
that were being mentioned before especially not with coronary heart disease
and cardiovascular disease, and we have found that there is no real risk with
the consumption of eggs and there is no association with the consumption of
eggs and heart disease.”
In fact Dr. Fernando Cuellar who has had some twenty years of experience in
the medical field recommends eating one egg per day.
Dr. Fernando Cuellar, Internist/Intensivist
“It is quite safe frankly Jackie and this isn’t an advertisement
for the egg industry or the Poultry Association. I think there has been a misconception
about the consumption of eggs but the bottom line is one egg a day is actually
good for you.”
Jacqueline Godwin,
“So seven eggs per week?”
Dr. Fernando Cuellar,
“Exactly and one egg a day is good for you. It brings along all the,
for example it is loaded with vitamins, it is loaded with different minerals
that we don’t find in many things, the protein content is really high
and what seems to be the sticking problem with cholesterol numbers, yes it is
high in cholesterol compared to other food but one egg a day is quite good for
you. Persons I must caution though who may have a problem with cholesterol level
and I classify them as high risk for heart disease and stroke can actually rethink
about eating eggs but that is a very selected group. But again occasional egg
consumption, you can’t go wrong there. So an egg is good for you.”
Orlando Habet,
“Industrialzed countries who have done the research have told consumers
that you know something, what we had mentioned in 1984 has now been expelled
with the new information that we have from the researchers. So they are consuming
it because they have realized it has the value and the nutrition and what is
also important is that they have used the egg now for local biological value
of the product, especially the protein, and eggs have the highest biological
value of any food known to man.”
Studies have also shown that people who do eat eggs do not snack in between
meals but according to the Manager of the Poultry Association Orlando Habet
despite all the eggciting news about the incredible egg Belizeans are still
not large consumers of eggs.
Orlando Habet,
“And in Belize it has averaged around 150 eggs per person per year
which is barely two eggs per person per week compared to the US which is about
290, Canada about 278, Mexico as I mentioned was 391 and this year will be close
to 458 eggs per year, and Guatemala is 328 or something like that.”
It is also important to note that while the cost of living in Belize
has increased significantly, one good news is that eggs continue to be one of
the cheapest sources of high quality protein. Jacqueline Godwin. Reporting for
7News.
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