Diabetes type 2: Dr Zoe Williams discusses high blood sugar risks
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Eating eggs on a regular basis has been linked to an increased risk of diabetes, by a study. The study found that people eating more than one egg a day (roughly 50 grams) were 60 percent more likely to have diabetic blood sugar levels. The study followed dietary and diabetes trends in China, where the number of people regularly eating eggs doubled over the course of their study. The results have been published in the British Journal of Nutrition.
The authors, Dr Ming Li and Dr Zumin Shi, note that eggs are not the only aspect of diet to have changed over the two decades of their study.
Dr Li said: “Over the past few decades China has undergone a substantial nutritional transition that’s seen many people move away from a traditional diet comprising grains and vegetables, to a more processed diet that includes greater amounts of meat, snacks and energy-dense food.”
In this way, egg consumption is more a symptom of the larger number of people eating meat heavy diets and ultra-processed foods.
Dr Li’s subsequent research has examined the role of processed foods in the Chinese obesity epidemic more closely.
The research on eggs and their dietary effects is incredibly mixed.
One study found that among people with type 2 diabetes, eating two eggs a day had no adverse effects on their lipid profile, concluding that eggs are safe for diabetics.
Another observational study in China found that among half a million people, those who ate eggs on a daily basis had an 18 percent lower risk of dying to a heart attack and a 28 percent lower risk of dying to a stroke.
This study focused on people who did not have any prior history of diabetes, cancer or heart disease.
Dietary research on eggs also has to account for different methods of preparation, with whole eggs having different dietary properties to the yolk or albumen.
The egg yolk contains most of the saturated fat, and high amounts of cholesterol.
The whites contain large amounts of protein and are low in fat.
One study on whole eggs found that it delayed the onset of age-related diabetes in rats.
China has a rate of diabetes of 11 percent, above the 8.5 percent global average, but they are far from the world leader in egg consumption.
At the end of the study period in 2009, daily egg consumption averaged 31 grams, less than one egg.
Information is available for the average daily consumption of eggs across other areas of the world for the same time period.
The continent with the highest egg consumption is Africa, at nearly two a day (93g).
Europeans eat slightly more than one on average(65g) each day.
In the later decade of the egg study, Dr Li and Dr Shi found that the consumption of ultra-processed foods more than tripled.
A UN report on ultra-processed food describes it “formulations of ingredients, mostly of exclusive industrial use”.
These ingredients are either synthetic in nature or have been produced by breaking down high calorie foods such as corn, grains and entire animal carcasses.
Examples listed by the UN include pre-packaged meals, soft drinks and reconstituted meat products such as chicken nuggets or sausages.
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