The problem with diet research

This is no good news for sunny side up aficionados. A new study published by the American Journal of Medical Association has said that eating an extra half-egg a day can raise the risk of cardiovascular diseases and premature death by six per cent and eight per cent respectively. (A half-egg daily is double of what the average American eats). It has also concluded that an extra 300 mg of dietary cholesterol per day increases the risk of cardiovascular disease by 17 per cent and the risk of premature death by 18 per cent. The findings, stated to be the outcome of studying about 30,000 adults have once again started the debate over the benefits and ill-effects of the ubiquitous egg.

It revives the age-old contention about the harmful effects of cholesterol-laden egg but on the other hand precipitates the confusion on its qualities.

Less than a year ago, a study published by the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition said that eating up to a dozen eggs a week did not increase risk of heart disease. Going even further, the American Heart Association’s Heart journal had published a study claiming that the consumption of one egg a day could significantly reduce the risk of heart disease by 12 per cent and stroke by 26 per cent. Diet and nutrition research is notorious for such contradictory results. There cannot be a better example than the daily tipple. Many studies have extolled the virtues of whiskey or red wine. At the same time, there are equally strong publications that emphatically dismiss any safe limits for consuming alcohol.

Thus, the diet and nutritional advices doled out by an incessant flurry of studies should be taken with a pinch of salt. The only thing that is key is moderation. Furthermore, the current egg storm is probably meaningless for the people of India, many of whom won’t even touch it and 90 per cent of the rest find themselves lucky to have even one in a week.