18 Mar 2019 BANT Comments on the Study Published in JAMA that High Consumption of Dietary Cholesterol or Eggs was Significantly Associated with Higher Risk of Cardiovascular Disease.
A study published on 15thMarch showed associations of dietary cholesterol or egg consumption with higher incidences of mortality and cardiovascular disease. BANT would like to take the opportunity to comment on the research since the consumption of eggs and links to heart disease have been controversial for decades.
BANT would like to advise the public that the study in question only shows an association, rather than a cause and effect and therefore cannot conclude links between eggs, cholesterol and mortality. Furthermore, it should be pointed out that:
- There are other factors to consider when looking what is causing high death rates in people who eat a lot of eggs.
- The associations reported in the study are only a “modest” association especially when compared to other risk factors such as smoking.
- The study does not report how the eggs were consumed, whether someone was eating a boiled egg each day or consuming as part of a fry-up, which is less healthy.
- Many other studies including meta-analyses show null effect of egg consumption on Cardiovascular Health Risk.
At all times, BANT is urging all to consider the study quality and biases before taking the headlines as gospel.
BANT Registered Nutrition Practitioners consider individuality that enables personalisation of dietary advice based on the most up-to-date research available. They do not suggest ‘one-size-fits-all’ advice following the health trend of the moment. BANT Nutrition Practitioners will provide the advice that best suits the client in front of them, whether they be omnivore, vegetarian or vegan. The Nutrition and Lifestyle medicine practiced by BANT Registered practitioners would always encourage the consumption of individual ingredients over ultra-processed foods.
NOTES TO EDITORS:
The British Association for Nutrition and Lifestyle Medicine (BANT)is the professional body for Registered Nutritional Therapy Practitioners. Its primary function is to assist its members in attaining the highest standards of integrity, knowledge, competence and professional practice, in order to protect the client’s interests; nutritional therapy and the registered nutrition practitioner.
BANT continues to promote its Wellbeing Guidelines campaign to encourage the British people to eat more individual ingredients and unprocessed food. Going back to some old-fashioned values, such a family meal times and improving the nations cooking skills to use fresh ingredients, will go a long way to help the obesity targets and health of the individuals.
BANT experts carefully developed a set of Wellbeing Guidelines, based on the latest science and research in the field of nutrition for optimal health. The BANT Wellbeing Guidelines were specifically designed to provide clear, concise, easy to understand information, avoiding outdated information and research, and addressing some of the most common health concerns. The most frequent reasons people seek nutritional advice is for weight management and/ or for general health and wellbeing. These issues are addressed by BANT with the following:
- THE WELLNESS SOLUTION (https://bant.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/WELLNESS-SOLUTION-IMAGE.jpg)
- FIGHT THE FAT / BEAT THE BLOAT (WEIGHT LOSS) (https://bant.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/FIGHT-THE-FAT-IMAGE.jpg)
BANT Registered Nutrition Practitioners are regulated by the Complementary and Natural Healthcare Council (CNHC) that holds an Accredited Voluntary Register (AVR) for the Professional Standards Authority for Health and Social Care (PSA). A recent report by the Royal Society for Public Health and the Professional Standards Agency made a key recommendation that AVR practitioners have the authority to make direct NHS referrals, in appropriate cases, to ease the administrative burden on GP surgeries.
As members of the CNHC Accredited Register, BANT Registered Nutrition Practitioners and other CNHC registrants, are the key workforce asset to harness 21st century lifestyle medicine to tackle the rising tide of stress related fatigue, obesity, Type 2 Diabetes, dementia and other chronic diseases.
To find a BANT practitioner, please click here: https://practitioner-search.bant.org.uk/
Reference
Zhong, VW (2019) ‘Associations of dietary cholesterol or egg consumption with incident cardiovascular disease and mortality’. JAMA. ONLINE:
https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/article-abstract/2728487
