Eat Eggs To Help Lose Weight

After writing about the connection between dairy and weight loss, I started thinking about the connection between eggs and weight loss. Eggs are another food that is “free” (meaning we can eat as much as we want of it) on the Slimming World plan.

So are eggs really good for weight loss or is Slimming World wrong and its members’ weight losses just unrelated flukes?

According to the studies, eggs are an excellent source to aid in fat loss. And this is great news mainly because I enjoy eating eggs, but also because eggs don’t cost much to buy. They are also, apparently, good for eye health.

According to this article in Medical News Today, eggs are helpful to weight loss because they contain an essential amino acid called leucine. The article references a study which found that leucine

“potentially provides a weight loss advantage during dieting by helping reduce loss of lean tissue, promote loss of body fat, and stabilize blood glucose levels.”

This article on the website Bio-Medicine references a study that promotes eggs eaten for breakfast as aiding in weight loss. It even mentions that the egg-eaters had higher reductions in their waist circumferences. (Loss of belly fat is always a good thing for those of us who need to lose weight!) There also seems to be connection between eating eggs and feeling full, as this article states,

“This study further substantiates the findings of a previous study, published in the Journal of the American College of Nutrition,2 which found that an egg breakfast induced greater satiety and significantly reduced short-term food intake compared to a calorically equivalent bagel breakfast.”

This article on the website Weightlossresources.co.uk found a connection between eating eggs and satiety too,

“According to new research from the Rochester Centre for Obesity in America, eating eggs for breakfast could help to limit your calorie intake throughout the rest of the day, by more than 400 calories.”

A reduction in daily calorie consumption by 400 calories a day could result in a weight loss of a pound every 8 or 9 days. (Results, of course, vary for individuals.) If eggs make you feel fuller for longer, then it corresponds that you would find it easier to reduce your calories throughout the day after eating them for breakfast.

This article on Food Product Design states that not only do eggs aid in weight loss but they also help to increase energy levels. It states that this is because eggs are a good source of high quality protein. Too little high quality protein is bad for the body as this article states,

“In May 2008, the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition published a special issue on the value of protein in the diet. A major finding was that getting too little high-quality protein may contribute to obesity, muscle loss and increased risk of chronic disease.”

This article by Feedstuffs Foodlink continues making the connection between egg consumption and weight loss and energy levels. It references a study done at the Louisiana State University's Pennington Biomedical Research Center with lead researcher Dr. Nikhil V. Dhurandhar,

“The women who consumed eggs as part of a diet plan lost "significantly" more weight and reported "significantly" higher energy levels, Dhurandhar said.”

The studies show that eggs really do aid in fat loss. This fact, in addition to all of the other health benefits to be gained by eating eggs, makes them an ideal choice of food for anyone trying to lose weight (barring any egg allergies).

Slimming World suggest having your eggs, boiled, scrambled, deviled, made into an omelette, poached or dry fried. (Dry frying eggs means spraying the pan lightly with a low calorie oil spray and frying the eggs in no more than that.) I enjoy my eggs in all of these forms, but my favorite way to eat eggs is to make an omelette stuffed with bell peppers, spring onions and sprinkled with a little low fat grated cheese.

What's your favorite way to eat eggs?