Narges Sarshar; Mojtaba Kianmehr; Mehdi Yaghoubi; Mohammad Ghahreman; Hosein Mokhtarian Deloee; Hamid Rasekhi
Volume 15, Issue 4 , January and February 2009, , Pages 213-219
Abstract
Background and Purpose: Hyperlipidemia particularly hypercholesterolemia is commonly accepted as a major risk factor for atherosclerosis and coronary heart diseases. Egg yolk is one of the richest sources of dietary cholesterol in human nutrition. As egg yolk has relatively lower cholesterol level in ...
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Background and Purpose: Hyperlipidemia particularly hypercholesterolemia is commonly accepted as a major risk factor for atherosclerosis and coronary heart diseases. Egg yolk is one of the richest sources of dietary cholesterol in human nutrition. As egg yolk has relatively lower cholesterol level in eggs enriched with Omega-3 the present study was conducted to determine the effect of consuming eggs enriched with omega-3 fatty acids on serum lipid profile and blood pressure. Methods and Materials: In this quasi-experimental research twenty-six (8 male and 18 female) university students were randomly selected from healthy volunteers for this study. Two well-cooked moderately sized eggs were added to the subjects' breakfast in addition to their regular diet for 4 weeks. Anthropometric and metabolic measurements their intake of energy and other nutrients were compared using paired t-test in SPSS before and after the new diet was given. Results: The consumption of enriched eggs for 4 weeks (2 eggs per day) significantly decreased the average level of triglyceride (p=0.0001) systolic (p=0.0001) and diastolic (p=0.001) blood pressures from 93.8 mg/dl 117.3 mmHg and 78.84 mmHg before the new diet to 67.5 mg/dl 95.38 mmHg and 69.46 mmHg respectively after consuming eggs. However HDL-C (p=0.0001) PUFA (p=0.03) and cholesterol intake (p=0.0001) significantly increased from 46.26 mg/dl 20.3 gr/day and 231.1 gr/day to 65.6 mg/dl 25.7 gr/day and 510.1 gr/day respectively at the end of the study. No significant changes were found in other parameters. Conclusion: The enrichment of eggs with omega-3 fatty acids raises HDL-C levels and decreased the triglyceride and blood pressure.