Ask Dr. Mike: Lipid Oxidation from Cooking Eggs

Here you'll find the answers to a wealth of health and wellness questions posed by Healthy Talk fans.

Listen in because what you know helps ensure healthy choices you can live with. Today on Healthy Talk, you wanted to know:

Several authors have talked about the amount of lipid peroxidation from cooking eggs. Dr. Mercola only eats raw eggs (I'm not a big fan of raw eggs). The theory is the more you cook egg yolk, the more fat oxidation occurs, which can lead to increased oxidized LDL (bad) cholesterol. What's your opinion?

First of all, Dr. Mike doesn't suggest eating raw eggs, especially if you don't know the source of the eggs. Eggs are very good for you; they are a great source of protein and packed with B vitamins. However, how you cook particular foods can influence the nutrient levels. In the case of eggs, Dr. Mike hasn't seen anything that's shown that hard boiling an egg or frying an egg is causing any significant amount of fat oxidation.

LDL oxidation is something you want to prevent while cooking. However, dietary sources of cholesterol aren't really the issue.

If you have a health question or concern, Dr. Mike encourages you to write him at askdrmikesmith@radiomd.com or call in, toll-free, to the LIVE radio show (1.844.305.7800) so he can provide you with support and helpful advice.