Egg Intake Is Associated with Lower Risks of Impaired Fasting Glucose and High Blood Pressure in Framingham Offspring Study Adults

Eggs, Dietary Choline, and Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease in the Framingham Heart Study

BACKGROUND

Eggs are rich in bioactive compounds, including choline and carotenoids that may benefit cardiometabolic outcomes. However, little is known about their relationship with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD).

OBJECTIVES

We investigated the association between intakes of eggs and selected egg-rich nutrients (choline, lutein, and zeaxanthin) and NAFLD risk and changes in liver fat over ∼6 y of follow-up in the Framingham Offspring and Third Generation cohorts.

METHODS

On 2 separate occasions (2002-2005 and 2008-2011), liver fat was assessed using a computed tomography scan to estimate the average liver fat attenuation relative to a control phantom to create the liver phantom ratio (LPR). In 2008-2011, cases of incident NAFLD were identified as an LPR ≤0.33 in the absence of heavy alcohol use, after excluding prevalent NAFLD (LPR ≤0.33) in 2002-2005. Food frequency questionnaires were used to estimate egg intakes (classified as <1, 1, and ≥2 per week), dietary choline (adjusted for body weight using the residual method), and the combined intakes of lutein and zeaxanthin. Multivariable modified Poisson regression and general linear models were used to compute incident risk ratios (RR) of NAFLD and adjusted mean annualized liver fat change.

RESULTS

NAFLD cumulative incidence was 19% among a total of 1414 participants. We observed no associations between egg intake or the combined intakes of lutein and zeaxanthin with an incident NAFLD risk or liver fat change. Other diet and cardiometabolic risk factors did not modify the association between egg intake and NAFLD risk. However, dietary choline intakes were inversely associated with NAFLD risk (RR for tertile 3 compared with tertile 1: 0.69, 95% CI: 0.51, 0.94).

CONCLUSIONS

Although egg intake was not directly associated with NAFLD risk, eggs are a major source of dietary choline, which was strongly inversely associated with NAFLD risk in this community-based cohort.

Probiotics improve eggshell quality via regulating microbial composition in the uterine and cecum

Probiotics benefit the health and production performance of chickens, but their impact on egg and eggshell quality, particularly in the later stage, remains unclear. Here, 1-day-old Tianfu green shell-laying hens were fed either non-probiotics feed (n = 180) or feed supplemented with 100 mg / kg probiotics (n = 180). 16S rDNA sequencing indicated that dietary probiotics decreased the distribution of uterine p_Firmicutes, g_Fusobacterium, and s_Fusobacterium_unclassified, while increased p_Proteobacteria, g_Ralstonia, and s_Ralstonia_unclassified. PICRUSt2 and Bug Base analysis revealed enrichment in fatty acid metabolism, thiamine metabolism, vitamin B6 metabolism pathways and increased relative abundance of Proteobacteria, Firmicutes, Bacteroidetes. With LDA > 4.5, 35 and 25 marker bacterial taxa were identified in the uterus and cecum, respectively. Probiotics significantly increased uterine villi length and width, and the expressions of ATP2B2,SLC26A9,TF,OC-17,OCX-32, and OVAL in the uterus at the early and peak laying stage. Meantime, probiotics improved egg quality, pore density of eggshell barrier layer, and levels of Ca2+, Na+, and Mg2+, whereas dropped levels of P3-, S2- and K+ in eggshell. In serum, Ca2+, K+, Na+ had a response to dietary probiotics at different laying stages, except Cl-. Furthermore, the changes of these phenotypes are closely related to the microbial structure of the uterus and cecum. Overall, the data suggest that dietary probiotics improved uterine and cecal microbiota, optimized egg quality, eggshell quality, uterus development, and regulated mineralization gene expression and ion content in serum and eggshell, thereby improving productivity of laying hens. These results provide reference for the application of probiotics in the laying industry.

Eggs and a Fiber-Rich Diet Are Beneficially Associated with Lipid Levels in Framingham Offspring Study Adults

Background

For many years, United States' dietary policy recommended limiting egg intake to no more than 3/wk in the belief that restricting dietary cholesterol would lower plasma cholesterol levels and thereby reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease. The evidence supporting these recommendations is controversial.

Objectives

To examine the impact of eggs, a major contributor to dietary cholesterol intake, on lipid levels and to determine whether these egg effects are modified by other healthy dietary factors in adults.

Methods

Males and females aged 30-64 y with available 3-d diet record data, without cardiovascular disease and not taking lipid- or glucose-lowering medications in the prospective Framingham Offspring cohort were included (n = 1852). Analysis of covariance models were used to compare mean follow-up lipid levels adjusting for age, sex, BMI, and dietary factors. Cox proportional hazard's models were used to estimate risk for elevated lipid levels.

Results

Consuming ≥5 eggs/wk was not adversely associated with lipid outcomes. Among men, consuming ≥5 (compared with <0.5) eggs/wk was associated with an 8.6 mg/dL lower total cholesterol level and a 5.9 mg/dL lower LDL cholesterol level, as well as lower triglycerides. Overall, higher egg intake combined with higher dietary fiber (compared with lower intakes of both) was associated with the lowest total cholesterol, LDL cholesterol, and LDL cholesterol-to-HDL cholesterol ratio. Finally, diets with higher (compared with lower) egg intakes in combination with higher total fish or fiber intakes, respectively, were associated with lower risks of developing elevated (>160 mg/dL) LDL cholesterol levels (hazard ratio: 0.61; 95% confidence interval: 0.44, 0.84; and HR: 0.70; 95% confidence interval: 0.49, 0.98, respectively).

Conclusions

Higher egg intakes were beneficially associated with serum lipids among healthy adults, particularly those who consumed more fish and dietary fiber.