Meta-analyses of randomized controlled trials find egg consumption modestly increases LDL cholesterol.
2 events · 1 assessment
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verdict confidence 0.85 · credence 0.90
Meta-analyses that pool randomized controlled trials do find that egg consumption raises LDL cholesterol by a modest amount. Several independent syntheses converge on this: a pooled analysis of 17 trials in healthy adults found the higher-egg groups had higher LDL cholesterol (a mean difference on the order of 8 mg/dL) and a slightly higher LDL/HDL ratio; a larger synthesis of 66 trials likewise reported statistically significant increases in total and LDL cholesterol; and dose-response reviews describe eggs and dietary cholesterol as making a "modest contribution" to plasma LDL. The direction is consistent and the effect size is small. The main qualification is not to the direction but to its size and generality. The rise is largest when eggs are simply added to an existing diet and shrinks, or disappears, when eggs displace other foods, particularly foods richer in saturated fat; recent controlled trials indicate the LDL response tracks accompanying saturated fat more than egg cholesterol itself. This is why the literature characterizes the effect as modest and context-dependent rather than large. None of this overturns the pooled finding the claim reports: across RCT meta-analyses, egg consumption is associated with a small but real increase in LDL cholesterol.
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