Are eggs bad for cholesterol?

In healthy people, eating extra eggs raises LDL cholesterol a little. A 2020 meta-analysis of 17 randomised trials found LDL about 8 mg/dL higher with more eggs, over trials that lasted 3 to 12 weeks4. What that small rise means for the heart over years is a question those trials did not test.

This article covers what was measured, how big the change was, and where the evidence stops. It describes nutrition research; it does not tell anyone how many eggs to eat. For anyone with high cholesterol or a question about their own blood results, a doctor is the right person to ask.

First, the words

Cholesterol is a waxy substance the blood carries inside tiny particles. A standard blood test reports it in milligrams per decilitre (mg/dL).

• LDL (low-density lipoprotein), often called "bad" cholesterol, is the kind that can build up inside artery walls4.
• HDL (high-density lipoprotein), often called "good" cholesterol, carries cholesterol back to the liver4.

Dietary cholesterol is the cholesterol in food. A large egg yolk holds about 275 mg of it4. The long-running question is how much of that ends up changing the numbers in your blood.

What was studied

The main evidence is a 2020 meta-analysis, a study that pools many trials into one estimate4. It included only randomised trials, where chance decides who eats the extra eggs, so the groups start alike. It also included only healthy people: trials limited to people with high cholesterol, diabetes or high blood pressure were excluded.

A crossover trial has the same people eat both ways, one after the other, which removes differences between people.

In plain terms: these were short, controlled feeding trials in healthy people, measuring blood cholesterol.

What the studies found

LDL went up a little. Across 13 trials that reported it, LDL was 8.14 mg/dL higher with more eggs than with control (95% confidence interval 4.46 to 11.82)4. A confidence interval is the range the true value most likely sits in; this one sits clearly above zero.

HDL barely moved. The difference was +1.27 mg/dL, with an interval from −0.28 to 2.83 that crosses zero4.

The ratio rose slightly. The LDL-to-HDL ratio, the paper's main outcome, was 0.14 higher (0.05 to 0.22)4.

The amount did not seem to matter much. One extra egg a day raised LDL by 8.37 mg/dL, two eggs by 7.32, and three or more by 9.874. The authors write that the results "did not show a clear trend of increment with the egg-consumption level" and that their study "cannot determine dose effect".

Longer trials showed a slightly larger rise. LDL was 8.09 mg/dL higher in trials within two months and 8.48 in trials over two months4. The difference is small, and no trial ran past 12 weeks.

This fits an older result. A 2001 meta-analysis of 17 feeding studies in 556 people found that each extra 100 mg of dietary cholesterol a day raised total cholesterol by about 2.2 mg/dL and HDL by about 0.3 mg/dL, nudging the ratio of the two slightly upward1.

In plain terms: in healthy people over a few weeks, extra eggs moved LDL up by a small, consistent amount, and HDL hardly at all.

How big is 8 mg/dL?

For context, the paper cites a guideline that puts optimal LDL below 100 mg/dL and borderline high at 130 to 1594. A rise of about 8 is a small share of those numbers. It is still a real average shift, and it held up across the trials (the spread between trials was low, I² 18%).

Averages hide individuals. The authors note that earlier reviews found some people respond more to dietary cholesterol than others, though they judged their own pooled result was not seriously skewed by this4.

What about heart disease?

This is where the evidence splits, and it comes from cohort studies. A cohort study follows people for years and records who gets ill. It shows associations, two things moving together, not proof that one causes the other.

• One pooled US analysis found a link. Six US cohorts, 29,615 adults followed for a median of 17.5 years: each extra half egg a day was associated with a 6% higher hazard of cardiovascular disease (hazard ratio 1.06, 1.03 to 1.10)2. The link was no longer significant once total dietary cholesterol was accounted for.
• A larger analysis found none. Three US cohorts of 215,618 nurses and other health professionals, followed up to 32 years, found at least one egg a day was not associated with cardiovascular disease (hazard ratio 0.93, 0.82 to 1.05) against less than one a month3. The same paper's meta-analysis of 1.7 million people found no link for each extra egg a day (0.98, 0.93 to 1.03).

Both rely on people reporting what they ate. People who eat more eggs also differ in other ways: in the second study they ate more red meat and had a higher body mass index on average3. The models adjust for such things, but not perfectly.

In plain terms: the blood-test effect is clear and small; whether it adds up to more heart disease over decades is not settled.

The nuance

• "Eggs have no effect on cholesterol." Not in these trials. LDL went up on average4.
• "Eggs cause heart disease." Not shown. No trial here measured heart outcomes, and the cohorts disagree23.
• An egg is not eaten alone. What else is on the plate changes the picture, and the trials did not know people's background diets4.
• Healthy people only. The pooled trials excluded people with high cholesterol, so they say nothing about that group.

Eggs are also a common protein food; see how much protein per kg and minimum fat intake per day for how they fit into daily totals.

The studies at a glance

Limits worth knowing

• Short trials. Every trial in the 2020 review ran 3 to 12 weeks; the authors say "RCTs with long term follow-up are needed"4.
• Blood markers only. No trial in the review measured heart attacks or strokes.
• Control foods varied. Some trials compared eggs with oatmeal, others with egg substitute or no egg at all4.
• Cohort data are associations. They rely on self-reported diets and cannot rule out other explanations2.
• Abstract only for four papers. We read the 2001, 2019, 2020 cohort and 2026 papers as abstracts; the 2020 trial review in full.
• Funding. The 2020 review was funded by a university hospital, with no conflicts declared4.

Latest research

The newest trial we opened is from 2026. In 45 adults with high blood lipids, adding 2 whole eggs a day to a structured heart-focused eating plan for 8 weeks did not change LDL significantly compared with the same plan without eggs (a difference of 4.2 mg/dL, p = 0.317)5. This was a different group from the healthy people in the 2020 review, the trial was small, and we read its abstract only. It describes one study, not advice for anyone with raised cholesterol.

The short version

• In healthy people, extra eggs raised LDL by about 8 mg/dL on average over 3 to 12 weeks.
• HDL barely moved, and one egg a day raised LDL about as much as three or more.
• No trial measured heart attacks or strokes; cohort studies disagree on a link.
• For individual questions about cholesterol, a doctor is the right person to ask.

Educational overview only — not medical advice.