Eggs are back, baby.
At least for a hot minute.
One decade they’re villains.
The next decade they’re heroes.
At this point, eggs have had more public image makeovers than some celebrities.
A new study from researchers at Loma Linda University found that older adults who ate eggs more frequently were less likely to be diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease over time.
The researchers followed more than 40,000 participants and linked dietary information with Medicare records over an average of 15 years.
Compared with people who never ate eggs, those who ate eggs five or more times per week had up to a 27% lower risk of being diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. Even more modest egg consumption was associated with lower risk.
So should we all start carrying emergency hard-boiled eggs in our pockets?
I mean…only if you really want to. ;)
It’s important to keep in mind that this was an observational study.
Researchers observed patterns in people’s diets and then looked at who developed Alzheimer’s disease over time.
That means the study found an association, not proof that eggs prevented Alzheimer’s disease.
And, as I’ve discussed on my podcast and in the blog many times, nutrition research is notoriously messy.
People who eat eggs may differ from people who don’t eat eggs in all sorts of ways that are difficult to fully measure. They may have different lifestyles, different overall diets, different exercise habits, different health conditions, or different socioeconomic circumstances.
The researchers adjusted for many factors, but observational studies can never completely eliminate the possibility that something else is helping explain the results.
The study population also consisted largely of Seventh-day Adventists, a group known for generally healthier lifestyles than the average American. That doesn’t make the findings wrong, but it does raise questions about how broadly they apply.
Still, there are biologically plausible reasons why eggs might matter.
Eggs contain choline, which plays an important role in the production of acetylcholine, a neurotransmitter involved in memory. They also contain lutein, zeaxanthin, omega-3 fatty acids, and phospholipids, nutrients that have all been linked to brain health in various ways.
In other words, researchers aren’t pulling this idea out of thin air.
But they’re also not proving that eggs are a magic Alzheimer’s prevention strategy.
My public health take?
One of the biggest mistakes we make with nutrition science is turning every study into a food battle.
Coffee versus no coffee.
Butter versus margarine.
Eggs versus no eggs.
Milk vs raw milk. (Sorry…had to.)
Most of the time, the more interesting story isn’t whether a single food is good or bad.
It’s how diet patterns, lifestyles, and biology interact over decades.
This study doesn’t prove eggs prevent Alzheimer’s disease.
But it does add another piece to the ongoing puzzle of how diet may influence brain health as we age.
Which means eggs are once again having a moment.
At least until the next nutrition study arrives and confuses everyone all over again.
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So that was eggs and Alzheimer’s diseaes, but in case you missed it: the last WTF Health News: Olive Oil and Your Brain: Does the Type of Olive Oil Matter?
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