Omega-3 Egg Brands:
The Omega 3 brand is the most popular brand among consumers. They are known for their high quality and low cost.
Their eggs have been tested to ensure they meet all the requirements of the FDA (Food & Drug Administration). The eggs from these farms are free range, organic, grass fed, and antibiotic free. These farm farms are located in Canada and Australia.
Omega-3 eggs are also known as DHA or docosahexaenoic acid. They are essential fatty acids found in fish oil supplements.
Fish oils have been shown to reduce inflammation, lower blood pressure, improve heart health, and even prevent some types of cancer. Omega-3s may also protect against depression and dementia. The EPA and DHA content varies depending on the species of fish used for food production. For example, salmon contains higher levels of EPA than other species.
There are several benefits associated with eating omega-3 eggs. Some studies show that consuming omega-3 eggs may decrease your risk of developing coronary artery disease, stroke, Alzheimer’s disease and Parkinson’s disease.
There is no evidence to suggest that eating omega-3 eggs increases your risk of any type of cancer. There is also little evidence to suggest that eating omega-3 eggs has any effect on the risk of cardiovascular disease or death. It is important to note that more studies are needed to prove the effects of eggs on human health. While eating eggs may increase your risk of developing heart disease or some types of cancer, it is important to remember that there are many other risk factors involved in these diseases. Eating eggs does not necessarily mean you will develop heart disease or cancer.
Even though it has been proven that eating omega-3 eggs may be good for you, it is important to keep in mind that eating other foods may provide you with the same health benefits. Some of these foods are fish, nuts, seeds, tofu, vegetables oils and leafy green vegetables.
These foods also contain a variety of other nutrients that promote good health.
The Benefits of Pastured Eggs
There are a number of benefits that come with pastured eggs. The first benefit is their nutritional value.
Compared to regular eggs, pastured eggs have 50% more vitamin A, 200% more vitamin E, 100% more omega-3 fatty acids, 300% more beta-carotene, 400% more vitamin D, and 700% more conjugated linoleic acid. They also have 100% more lutein and zeaxanthin, both of which are very good for your eyes.
There are a number of additional benefits that come with pastured eggs. They include the fact that they have:
Higher in vital nutrients: Compared to regular eggs, pastured eggs have a better fatty acid profile. There are also lower levels of saturated fat and cholesterol.
Compared to regular eggs, pastured eggs have 50% less saturated fat.
More antioxidants: Compared to regular eggs, pastured eggs have up to six times more antioxidants.
Higher in B vitamins: Compared to regular eggs, pastured eggs have significantly higher levels of B5, B12 and B2. They also have three times more biotin, nine times more folic acid and thirteen times more vitamin B6.
Higher in Vitamin A: Compared to regular eggs, pastured eggs have three times more vitamin A.
Higher in Vitamin E: Compared to regular eggs, pastured eggs have eight times more vitamin E.
Higher in CLA: Conjugated Linoleic Acid (CLA) is an essential fatty acid that has been associated with a number of health benefits. It is estimated that pastured eggs can contain up to ten times more CLA than regular eggs.
Higher In Omega-3s And Vitamin D: Compared to regular eggs, pastured eggs have been reported to have anywhere from two to seven times more omega-3 fatty acids and vitamin D.
Higher In Lycopene: Compared to regular eggs, pastured eggs have been reported to have anywhere from thirty to three hundred times more lycopene.
Higher In Carbon Monoxide: In addition to all of the other benefits, pastured eggs also contain small amounts of carbon monoxide. This is a colorless, odorless and tasteless chemical that has been shown to promote healthy blood flow and contribute to cardiovascular health.
Due to these differences, many people believe that pastured eggs are healthier than regular eggs for you. There are others who do not believe in these health benefits and instead believe that pastured eggs are no better than regular eggs.
Some studies have shown that pastured egg yolks can be up to four times higher in vitamin D than regular egg yolks. This could prove to be of great benefit to people with vitamin D deficiencies.
What Do Other Countries Do?
When it comes to food safety regulations, most countries follow the guidelines set by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).
In 2003, the WHO and the FAO published a report called “Guidelines for the Safety Assessment of Foods Derived from Biotechnology.” This report concluded that the use of recombinant DNA techniques to produce new organisms (such as the introduction of fish genes into egg plants to produce flourescent eggs) are just as safe, if not safer, than their non-genetically modified counterparts.
In 2008, the FAO and WHO published a report called “Human Health Impacts of Animal Biotechnology: A Consensus Report.” This report concluded that:
“Most foods and food-producing animals produced using genetic modification pose no risk to human health. Foods derived from GM plants already in use for decades, such as tomatoes, soybeans and corn, have not been shown to have any impact on human health.
No adverse effects on human health have been shown as a result of consumption of such foods by the general population. While a few effects on human health have been suggested by some studies as a result of consumption of GM foods, these have either proven to be false or have not been confirmed by other studies. In most cases, arguments presented in opposition to genetic modification of food animals rely on assumptions about the nature of science and the biological sciences in particular, which have no basis in fact. In developing recommendations in this report, the expert group relied solely on scientific evidence. Arguments suggesting that genetic modification is a risk to human health because the molecular mechanisms underlying basic biological processes are not fully understood, and arguments asserting that current animal feeding studies are inadequate to demonstrate the safety of GM foods for human consumption, have no scientific merit. For ethical reasons, human feeding studies that might unequivocally prove whether or not a GM food is safe would be impossible to conduct.”
The report also states that: “GM foods currently available on the international market have passed safety tests and are not likely to present any danger to human health. It is important to note that these foods reduce disease risks and help provide essential nutrients to people in many parts of the world.”
What Does This Mean For You?
This is all well and good for the rest of the world, but what about the US?
Well, it turns out that there is a report from the WHO (again) called “Safety Evaluation of Novel Foods: Application of Guidelines” which was published in 2000. This report states that:
“Novel foods have been subjected to a safety evaluation and the conclusions of these evaluations are that, apart from certain exceptions, novel foods are no less safe than conventional food. In addition, the methodologies used in the evaluations are applicable to all other potential novel foods.”
The “certain exceptions” of course refer to foods produced using recombinant DNA techniques, which as explained above, includes most of the GE food currently on the market. However, even with these GE foods, the report concludes that:
“Novel foods which have undergone an appropriate safety evaluation and been approved as safe in one country can be safely consumed by people in other countries.”
So according to this report, if a GE crop has been proven safe for consumption in another nation, it is safe for consumption in the US. Currently there are over 60 countries that grow and consume GMO crops without any additional restrictions or regulations.
That would mean the roughly 94% of the GE crops in the world that are currently growing and being consumed in the US would be perfectly fine to consume as well.
Now, the report does state that there are other factors to consider when determining whether a GE food should be allowed in a country, such as economic or cultural factors. For example, if there is strong opposition to the crop in question by the public, then the government can take that into consideration when making a final decision on whether or not to allow it.
That brings us to the US and GE foods. The general US population seems to have a positive outlook on GE foods in general.
A 2013 poll done by the New York Times found that:
“83% of the respondents agreed that foods from genetically modified plants – such as corn – that have been approved by food regulators should be deemed safe.”
Despite this, there are quite a few people who believe that there are serious health risks associated with GE crops. These people even have a name, “the anti-GMO movement” and they have indeed been quite effective in getting laws passed that restricts the sale and growth of GE crops.
In fact, since you mentioned California, that brings me to my next point.
Pesticide Use and GE Crops
It is true that in the first few years following the widespread use of GMO crops that the amount of herbicide and pesticide used increased. This is due to the fact that the first few GE crops were engineered to be resistant to their respective herbicides (glyphosate for Round-Up Ready varieties) or pesticides (Bt toxin for Bt varieties).
Since farmers were now able to more effectively kill the weeds and pests that would normally eat away at their crops, there was a temporary increase in the amount of chemicals used.
However, this is no longer the case as pesticide and herbicide use has since gone down due to:
1) The advent of Roundup Ready varieties (c.f.
Sources & references used in this article:
Meet real free-range eggs by C Long, T Alterman – Mother Earth News, 2007 – winwinfarm.com
Eggs, pasture-raised by E White, E Yolk – whfoods.com
The Role of Pasture-Raised Animals in Human & Ecological Health by PA Clarion – headwaterspa.org
Brominated flame retardants in Canadian chicken egg yolks by DFK Rawn, A Sadler, SC Quade, WF Sun… – Food Additives and …, 2011 – Taylor & Francis
Omega-3 fatty acids in metabolism, health, and nutrition and for modified animal product foods by DL Palmquist – The Professional Animal Scientist, 2009 – Elsevier
10. Cholesterol content and health effects in free range, organic and conventionally raised poultry and eggs by C Price – The New York Times, 2008
… production type and region on polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB), polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxin and dibenzofuran (PCDD/F) concentrations in Canadian chicken egg … by C Wynn, T Williams, O Allen, P Inserra – of cholesterol, 2016 – books.google.com
