“The Incredible, Edible (Memory-Enhancing?) Egg”

I love eggs. I eat 8-10 at a time sometimes as part of my carnivore diet.

We also serve eggs to our assisted living residents. Lots of them.

Some of the residents complain they’re sick of eggs from time to time. We back off when they do but still keep things low carb.

Yes eggs have cholesterol. Most of the items on the carnivore diet do. And yes I talk to the doctors ALL THE TIME about taking our residents off their statins. We’re not really worried about cholesterol.

Especially since the brain is the most cholesterol-rich organ in the body. Why would I want to limit it?

For the record if the doctor or family says no, we leave them on the statin.

I can’t think of a time where we’ve had an increase in heart problems. We’ve never had anyone pass due to a heart attack or cardiovascular disease that they did not have prior to moving in.

Now it looks like eggs can be beneficial for cognitive health as well.

Two studies came out recently suggesting that eggs can help with brain health.

The first study looked at 1024 older adults with 280 participants that had a diagnosis of Alzheimer’s or dementia. The study showed that intake of more than one or two eggs a week were associated with a decline in Alzheimer’s risk.

The study also looked at some of the participants after death. A definitive diagnosis of Alzheimer’s comes from an autopsy where the pathologist will look for ‘characteristic abnormalities’ like plaques and neurofibrillary tangles.

In the 578 autopsies, they found those who consumed multiple eggs before death were associated with lower Alzheimer’s pathology in the brain.

In the second study, the authors looked at egg consumption and change in cognitive function among 890 ambulatory adults who were older than 55.

Granted they tracked egg consumption through food questionnaires. I’m not a fan of these since many people can’t tell you what they ate several days ago.

However, I think a lot of people could tell you a rough idea of how many eggs they eat on a regular basis. People usually eat a similar amount of eggs for each breakfast.

Don’t you? I can confidently say I eat at least 40-50 eggs a week or so. Lots of weeks more than that!

Although the study did not see a big difference in cognitive decline for men, it did see less memory decline for women who consumed eggs on a regular basis.

The studies attribute the beneficial effects of eggs to choline. Choline may help produce acetylcholine. Acetylcholine is a neurotransmitter in the brain.

Eggs also have a lot of Omega-3 fatty acids and Lutein. Lutein is a carotenoid which helps the brain.

So don’t be afraid of eggs. They might protect you and your loved ones from losing their memory.