Why We Love Eggs, and You Should, too!

We all know that eggs are delicious, but did you know that they are also extremely good for you?  The amazing health benefits that come from eating eggs are endless. Their nutritious value aids in everything from skin and eye protection, to heart disease reduction, and even improved liver and brain function.

Eggs have also been a popular food choice for those seeking out healthier food options and diets for many years.  And, it’s easy to see why. Eggs are a great source of protein, not to mention one of the least expensive sources of high-quality protein, that help your body keep building more of the best version of you.  In fact, they’re such a high-quality source of protein that the World Health Organization uses the egg as the standard for evaluating protein quality in other foods.

If all of this still isn’t enough to get you excited about eggs, let’s take a closer look at several of the amazing health benefits that eggs provide:

• Eggs Reduce the Risk of Heart Disease – Consuming eggs can help keep your heart beating healthier, longer.  One of the most intriguing health benefits of eggs is their ability to reduce the risk of heart disease and improve cardiovascular function thanks in large part to their omega-3 fatty acids.
• Eggs Can Help Prevent the Onset of Disease – In addition to heart disease, an egg-rich diet can also help prevent metabolic syndrome, a cluster of conditions that all increase your likelihood of several types of disease.  These conditions included increased blood sugar levels, excess body fat (especially around the waist) and abnormal cholesterol levels. All of these conditions increase your risk of heart disease, stroke, and diabetes.
• Eggs Can Help You Maintain Liver Function and Brain Health – Our bodies naturally produce something called choline, a macronutrient, in very small amounts.  But, we mostly get this nutrient from the foods that we consume, and eggs are a choline-rich food.  This means that they greatly assist in liver function (your liver depends on choline) and brain development, among many other benefits.
• Eggs Improve Eye Health – Eggs contain carotenoids that are beneficial to your eye health as well as your overall health.  They contain two “oxygenated” carotenoids in particular that are especially important for your eyes – lutein and zeaxanthin.  These help protect your eyes by filtering certain light wavelengths.
• Eggs Keep Your Skin Healthy – The carotenoids Lutein and zeaxanthin in eggs don’t just protect your eyes; they also protect your skin.  They work to filter out the more harmful blue spectrum rays by slowing down the oxidative damage light can wreak on your skin, specifically by UV rays, and they can even help prevent skin cancer.
• Egg Consumption Can Aid in Weight Loss – Eggs are a great food for people who want to lose weight because they are high in protein (which is filling) and contain that vital lutein which experts say may have a positive impact on a person’s physical activity level.

We Have the Best Egg Dishes in the West Loop!

Now that we all understand the incredible benefits of eggs, we hope you’re excited to starting adding more of them to your healthy diet.  And, you can start with some wonderful options right here, with us, at Chicago Waffles in the West Loop! These are some of our favorite dishes off our menu that feature deliciously nutritious eggs:

• Healthy Breakfast 2x2x2 – Two eggs any style, two strips of turkey bacon, and two walnut pancakes with fresh bananas on top.
• Smoked Salmon Omelette – Smoked salmon omelet with red onions, capers, and cream cheese, served with sliced tomatoes and cucumbers.
• Vegetarian Omelette – Sliced mushrooms, onions, tomatoes, red peppers, and baby spinach.
• Mediterranean Omelette – Fresh baby spinach, feta cheese, and tomatoes.
• Avocado Toast – Brioche bread, pesto, burrata cheese, mashed avocado, roasted tomatoes, one poached egg and watercress salad on top.

Happy eating!