Background: Contrary to epidemiological evidence, and some guidelines recommending that people with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) limit their consumption of eggs and/or dietary cholesterol, our published three-month weight maintenance study (Fuller N et al AJCN 2016) demonstrated that a high egg (HiEgg, ≥12 eggs/week) versus low egg diet (LoEgg, <2 eggs/week), did not have any adverse effects on cardiometabolic risk factors in people with T2DM.
Objective: To determine the effects of a high versus low egg diet on cardiometabolic risk factors during a weight loss programme over 9 months, following the 3-month weight maintenance period.
Design: 128 subjects with pre-diabetes or T2DM commenced the weight loss phase of the study, attending the clinic monthly from 3 to 6 months. They were prescribed a daily energy restriction of 2.1 MJ and instructed on specific types and quantities of food to be consumed as per their allocated diet. They were reviewed at 9 and 12 months.
Results: From 3 to 12 months there was similar weight loss (HiEgg -3.1±6.3 vs LoEgg -3.1±5.2 kg, p=0.48). Cholesterol intake was significantly higher in the HiEgg group, but otherwise nutritional intakes were similar. There were no differences in serum lipids, in particular, LDL cholesterol was marginally reduced from 3 to 12 months in both groups (HiEgg -0.04±0.78, LoEgg -0.01±0.90, p=0.77). The high egg diet did not have any adverse effect on serum levels of inflammatory markers (hsCRP, Interleukin-6, E-selectin), cardiovascular risk factors (including isoprostanes and adiponectin) or glycemic control over12-months.
Conclusions: Individuals with pre-diabetes or T2DM on a high egg diet for 12 months exhibited no adverse changes in cardiometabolic markers compared to participants on a low egg diet. It appears that a diet including more eggs than is recommended by some countries may be consumed by this population while on a healthy diet.