Eating eggs unlikely to raise cholesterol

A team from the University of Surrey has found that people can eat as many eggs as they like without it affecting their cholesterol levels, going against conventional wisdom.

The team, writing in the British Nutrition Foundation's Nutrition Bulletin, say that there is still a widespread misconception that eating more than three eggs a week is bad for you.

They say that eating saturated fats will have a far greater effect on cholesterol levels. Eggs are in fact a key part of a healthy diet.

While elevated blood cholesterol levels increase the risk of heart disease, only around a third of the cholesterol in the body comes from the diet.

Other factors such as smoking, being overweight and physical activity can influence blood fat and cholesterol levels and heart disease risk.

The British Heart Foundation (BHF) dropped its advice to limit egg consumption to three a week in 2007 in light of new evidence.

However, research by the British Egg Information Service suggests 45% of consumers still believe it is sensible to limit consumption.