How Many Eggs a Day is too much

[Christopher03]

I am eating at least 4-5 whole eggs a day trying to bulk up. Are there gonna be negative consequences on my cholesterol levels? I am 17 and fairly active 

[Opo]

22 hours ago, Michael569 said:

Eggs aren't even that great of a protein. 

They have great absorption. 

What metric do you use? 

[Opo]

7 hours ago, Michael569 said:

Even if that was true (I don't know, haven't studied the absorption rate of amino acids from different foods), you are getting 6 grams of protein per egg while getting 150 - 250 milligrams of cholesterol. There are just much better ways to obtain that protein while the food being "cleaner" and supplying your body with even more nutritional value. Even if the aim is to be shredded and build muscle, still the typical egg / oat / meat diet is just so outlived and so incredibly limiting. Every single bodybuilder out there eats the same way where there are so many other things they could be eating without gaining fat.  

Usually bodybuilders now eat a lot of egg whites and then they put in an egg or two so they reduce fats. 

7 hours ago, Michael569 said:

For example, if instead of 6 eggs for breakfast you'd do tofu scramble from 250 grams of tofu you'd be getting equal amount of protein, zero cholesterol, zero saturated fat and shitload of calcium, protective phytoestrogens and a decent amount of copper, manganese, iron and phosphorus. Granted 250g of organic tofu will cost 2.5 USD where 6 eggs may cost 1 dollar if you get them from the cheapest factory-farmed hens, it is still a cost I'm willing to pay every single time. 

Long term health is ALWAYS more important than some short term gains. 

What do you think of just focusing on the macros and then getting the nutrients from supplements. 

It seems silly to me but I'd like to hear your opinion. 

7 hours ago, Michael569 said:

what you mean? 

The things you named above. 

Like valuing health. 

[The0Self]

From my research there can be issues with more than 2 eggs a day over the long term. It wasn't just the cholesterol though, it was the choline or something but I can't remember exactly. However if you eat 4-5 eggs at a time but only did so 2-3x a week, or nearly daily but only for short periods (a couple weeks), there would probably be no negative effects.

[Raphael]

On 10/1/2021 at 1:38 PM, Michael569 said:

Yes there might be, potentially. The curve after which eggs bend towards harmful is somewhere around 8-10 eggs per week.

I currently eat 19 eggs per week. I eat one egg every day in the morning + 4 eggs three times per week.

What could be the consequences for my health?

[SQAAD]

I also eat many eggs. Like 3 whole eggs per day. But no more than that. The cholesterol could be a problem for some people longer term. It's good to check your cholesterol levels and see how it affects you.

[Ora]

The cholesterol in eggs is actually healthy. There's a myth that's perpetuated about all cholesterol=bad. Having high cholesterol is actually protective as long as it's the good one.

Eggs are amazing, especially the yolks. One of very few foods with real vitamin a (not beta carotene) and vitamin e in good amounts. Best to have runny yolks to get those vitamins in tact though. You'll see the color of the yolk go from orange to yellow as they oxidize. Free range eggs are also superior to soy and corn fed eggs. If the yolk is light yellow, they most likely been fed a soy and corn diet which leads to low lvls of vit a and e as well as being higher in unsaturated fats which is toxic.

Also if your not using eggs for protein and bulking, you could not eat all the whites, because the whites of the egg are actually a little unhealthy. I forget why exactly but I think the albumin or something messes with the gut and can enter the blood stream where you don't want it. When cooked it's less of a problem, though still a small problem. Dr mercola only eats the yolks and gives the whites to his personal trainer lol.

Michael you used the argument about tofu having no saturated fat being a good thing, but most people these days will agree saturated fats are healthy. The whole saturated fat is bad and hardens arteries has been debunked. People are throwing out their toxic margarine and unsaturated fats (which are highly oxidized) in favor of saturated fats as its metabolism boosting along with other benefits.

In general I'm still on the fence about tofu. It's loaded with unsaturated fats which leads to storing fat in the body. Which is why they feed it to livestock, to fatten them up. They actually tried feeding cattle coconut oil because the myth it makes you fat,, but the cattle ended up losing weight! Then they found how corn and soy fatten them up so they switched to those.

But there are possible benefits eating it sometimes for certain people who are at risk of breast cancer and such diseases. I wouldn't use it for anything other than medicine though.

Edited October 3, 2021 by Ora

[Ora]

i dont believe im spreading misinformation and pointing them towards foods that could cause harm. i believe the exact opposite actually. Its archaic to still believe saturated fats are harmful for health and unsaturated fats healthy. i believe the method of action for pufas being bad is because PUFAs cause downregulating of thyroid function, downregulating of thyroid lowers metabolism, raises stress hormones like cortisol, and promotes estrogen dominance. so its really not PUFAS themselves, but the cascade of effects they cause, in addition to being PUFAS themselves because most PUFA oils that have been extracted are rancid since they are so volatile and prone to oxidation unless together with polyphenols such as olive oil. this is NOT the same as eating nuts and seeds. how many nuts and seeds can you eat in a day? however many you eat it wouldnt even equal one tablespoon of the PUFA oils extracted from them. not to mention a lot of nuts are not as heavy in PUFA like almonds and macadamias which are more heavy in MUFA which isnt that bad. 

i wish i could find studies about the coconut oil feeding to cattle, but i can only find quotes by Ray peat claiming it happened in 1940, but no studies. And no i doubt they just fed them spoonfuls of coconut oil, it would probably be mixed into the feed like anything else you would supplement in livestock feed.

but i agree you shouldnt eat too much saturated fat. i think there are studies linking overconsumption of saturated fat in combination of carbs to be unbeneficial. everything in moderation i guess.

im not sure also about the egg yolk thing, but i know most retinol and vitamin e oils are very amber in color, which makes sense that it would color the yolk into a darker shade of yellow/orange if it was rich in those vitamins. while some may be fed supplemental feed that colors the yolks, generally a darker yolk is an indication of higher vitamin a and e. generic grocery store bought yolks are so light yellow its crazy. compared to the ones i get form the organic stores and local farmers. its like how europeans take a bite of a conventionally grown american tomato and comment how it just tastes like water compared to properly grown tomatoes in rich soils.

This is a thread with papers and studies collected by one person https://raypeatforum.com/community/threads/a-must-read-pufa-primer.8033/. Im no expert by any means, i just read what other people post and if it seems theres sufficient evidence pointing towards one direction ill adopt that theory until there is better evidence provided from a different point of view. So far it seems most PUFAs are not good. and no its not from the paleo crowd and keto crowd. these things were talked about much earlier than those diets became a thing by ray peat.

article by ben greenfield with studies promoting saturated fats: https://bengreenfieldfitness.com/article/fat-loss-articles/the-french-paradox/

other saturated fat promoting articles

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0899900721002562?via%3Dihub

https://medicaldialogues.in/diet-nutrition/news/foods-rich-in-saturated-fatty-acids-and-high-protein-linked-to-better-thyroid-function-study-81513

other random study

PUFA found in gonads of infertile animals, SFA found in gonads of fertile animals. the journal entry changed (manipulated more like)  its title from identifying PUFA as the cause and just changed it to "High Fat" intake. https://journals.physiology.org/doi/abs/10.1152/ajpendo.00235.2020. If you can access the original study you would fine the following quoted: 
"...After grouping FAs by degree of unsaturation and the position of the double bonds (Table S5 and Figure 4), we observed that the most abundant FA family in the testis of CTRL and HFDt groups are the saturated fatty acids (SFAs) (55.79% and 41.83%, respectively), while polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) are the most abundant in the testis of mice from the HFD group (44.21%). HFD and HFDt mice had also increased testicular relative abundance of monosaturated fatty acids (MUFAs) (26% and 21%, respectively), with increased accumulation of oleic acid (C18:1n-9). Moreover, Table S5 also shows indirect measures for the anti-inflammatory/pro-inflammatory potential via lipid mediators (C22:6n-3/C20:4n-6 ratio), the combined activity of Δ5- and Δ6-desaturases (D5D and D6D) (C20:4n-6/C18:2n-6 ratio), and the activity of Δ4-desaturases (D4D) (C22:5n-6/C20:4n-6 ratio)."

"...In our previous work (12), we also reported reduced sperm quality which was associated with fat deposition. Moreover, there is a decrease in the activity of antioxidant enzymes (Cat and GSR) in the testes of life-long HFD fed mice. Therefore, it is possible that extra lipid intake, notably in PUFAs, is the cornerstone in testicular antioxidant balance. This hypothesis is supported by the differences in lipid fractions between groups (Figure 4), the differences in the correlations of lipid fractions against sperm parameters (Figure 6A), and the sample separation achieved by the corresponding PCA (Figure 6B)."

"...In sum, our data demonstrates that a HFD during early life akin to childhood and puberty causes an excessive accumulation of unsaturated FAs is testes. A diet intervention, replacing HFD for a balanced diet was proven effective in protecting/preventing metabolic dysfunction. However, a HFD during early life caused irreversible metabolic remodeling in testes, with long-term sperm defects. Dietary intervention in early adulthood promotes lipolysis in testes, particularly from unsaturated FAs, towards the CTRL state, but this process is apparently too slow to recover normal sperm parameters. Mechanistically, our data suggests that HFD promotes a pro-inflammatory state in testis, aggravated by a positive feedback system that favors the accumulation of n-6 PUFAs, precursors of inflammatory response signaling molecules. Our model did not allow us to verify whether testicular lipid composition and normal sperm quality could be achieved later in life..."

 

Edited October 3, 2021 by Ora

[kamwalker]

On 10/2/2021 at 5:36 AM, Michael569 said:

For example, if instead of 6 eggs for breakfast you'd do tofu scramble from 250 grams of tofu you'd be getting equal amount of protein, zero cholesterol, zero saturated fat and shitload of calcium, protective phytoestrogens and a decent amount of copper, manganese, iron and phosphorus. Granted 250g of organic tofu will cost 2.5 USD where 6 eggs may cost 1 dollar if you get them from the cheapest factory-farmed hens, it is still a cost I'm willing to pay every single time. 

Long term health is ALWAYS more important than some short term gains. 

 

Have you tried organic pasture raised eggs? I buy these even though they are expensive, but they seem so much healthier and better than normal eggs. Whether I scramble them or fry them the consistency is so different from your typical egg. 

[Hello from Russia]

@Michael569 What do you think about estrogen issues regarding soy consumption?

Edited October 4, 2021 by Hello from Russia

[Ora]

real pasture raised eggs will always be more nutritious. farmers will add oyster shells to the chickens feed if the shells of the eggs do not look strong and healthy and it immediately hardens the shells. so whatever the chicken eats will go to the eggs. 

[Gregory1]

143 eggs a day is too much. 

[The0Self]

On 10/3/2021 at 4:41 AM, Michael569 said:

On 10/2/2021 at 2:21 PM, The0Self said:

it was the choline or something but I can't remember exactly.

Choline being turned into trimethylamine-N oxide (TMAO) in the gut & liver could be the theory? 

I believe that is actually what it was.

[Ora]

that blog post seems pretty well researched. hope you dont mind if i post it in the ray peat forums to see what they have to say since im not very good at analyzing studies. i dont think i can agree that saturated fat is that harmful since cultures like india and eastern asians ate a lot of butter and animal fats before refined vegetable oils came around and they have quite long lifespans. i think dr mercola said he takes most of his calories through mct oil when hes doing keto and being how obsessive he is about his health i cant imagine him doing that if it was detrimental.

[impulse9]

14 hours ago, Gregory1 said:

143 eggs a day is too much. 

I have come to the same exactly conclusion!

[FredHere]

The egg white has a substance calle tryphotan (sp?) which is a major aging factor. That's why you see that the skin of many bodybuilders is way older and less firm than would be expected for their age.

I would cut back on the eggs, especially on the egg whites. 

[Gregory1]

15 hours ago, FredHere said:

The egg white has a substance calle tryphotan (sp?) which is a major aging factor. That's why you see that the skin of many bodybuilders is way older and less firm than would be expected for their age.

I would cut back on the eggs, especially on the egg whites. 

You can still eat the white juice out of your eggs though - Try it out, it has healthy proteins in it and tastes good as well!

[Inliytened1]

On 9/30/2021 at 7:44 PM, Christopher03 said:

I am eating at least 4-5 whole eggs a day trying to bulk up. Are there gonna be negative consequences on my cholesterol levels? I am 17 and fairly active 

I eat 6 eggs  around 4 or 5 days a week.  But out of those 6 only 2 are whole eggs the other 4 are egg whites.  Too many whole eggs can raise your cholesterol so I wouldn't recommend more than 2 whole eggs a day.  That way you are still getting all the nutrients of whole eggs.

As far as the negatives towards eggs if you excercise regularly and stick to a healthy diet  you'll be fine.  I'm 51 and look 35.  Never had an issue with aging or health problems..aging is mostly genetics.  I'm in great health and have eaten eggs and egg whites my whole life.  Enjoy!

 

[Yarco]

From what I understand, like 90% of cholesterol is made within the body naturally, not from foods. So if you eat too much cholesterol in food it'll just pass through you.

If you're doing a keto or carnivore diet it should be fine. But if you're eating carbs and sugars along with protein/fat, thats when it starts to really clog up your arteries from what I've heard.

[Matt23]

I lay like 2-3.  I'd say laying 6 eggs a day is too much and could cause rectal issues.  Maybe ask a doctor ...