How many eggs per day can you eat? There’s a lot of conflicting advice around it, so registered nutritionist Claire Turnbull is here to set the story straight. Plus, new research reveals how it can support brain health.
For years, we were told to limit our egg intake over cholesterol concerns. Then the messaging changed. Now everyone’s saying, “Eggs are a great source of protein!”
More recently, research published in the Nutrition Bulletin reveals it’s a natural brain food across the lifespan, especially for pregnant women, babies and growing kids.
No wonder everyone’s confused! Are eggs good for us or should we limit them? And how many can we actually eat?
Scrambling the Cholesterol Myth: How Many Eggs Per Day is Safe?
As New Zealand registered nutritionist Claire Turnbull passionately points out, it’s been more than a decade since scientists have debunked the myth that eggs significantly increase cholesterol.
“The cholesterol in food does not influence the cholesterol in your blood in the same way we thought we did a decade ago which is why the advice changed,” she explains.
High cholesterol levels can in part be due to someone’s genetic predisposition, says Claire, as some people naturally produce more cholesterol than others.
In 2016, the Heart Foundation New Zealand updated their guidelines to reflect this. For people with existing heart disease, diabetes or increased cardiovascular risk, the recommendation changed from limiting three eggs per week, to six eggs per week.
But for everyone else? “For an average adult, our children, older people, [especially] those older people who struggle to eat enough food…do not need to worry about that limit,” says Claire. “If an average adult is having a couple of eggs a day, that’s great!”
How Eggs Support Brain Development
The new Nutrition Bulletin review found that the unique combination of nutrients found in eggs can support brain development and function during pregnancy through to adolescence, highlighting that eating eggs in early life is important for neurodevelopment, motor development and academic performance.
The research emphasises the “window of opportunity” which is the first 1000 days from conception to age two, a crucial time for a baby’s brain development. “[At this time], nutrition is so important and fundamentally changes how the brain develops,” says Claire.
Eggs have a plethora of nutrients: folate, iodine, vitamins A, B12 and D, and the most important one for our brain development – choline.
Claire describes choline as a nutrient essential for body and brain function, but says that what’s worrying is the choline intake of women of childbearing age in Aotearoa have been found to be substantially lower than advised.
The study noted two eggs provide 80% of a pregnant woman’s recommended daily choline, and that choline in eggs is particularly bioavailable compared to supplements.
And for babies? Plunket recommends mashed or pureed eggs as Stage 1 food from six months. But Claire says she finds that often parents delay eggs, worried about allergies, but “delaying isn’t recommended as it can increase the risk of allergy rather than reduce it.”
Brain Support Across Life Stages
In another 2025 review in the Journal of Nutrition, Health & Aging, it found the benefits extend beyond childhood.
Moderate consumption – about three to seven eggs weekly – is associated with slower memory decline and reduced risk of cognitive impairment and dementia in older people.
“Older people can have two boiled eggs every morning and not feel bad,” says Claire.
For elderly living alone and struggling with appetite, eggs are easy to cook and full of nutrients to support brain health.
In a Nutshell, How Many Eggs Can We Eat?
- People with existing heart disease, diabetes or increased cardiovascular risk: Up to six eggs a week
- Childbearing and pregnant women: Two eggs per day
- Babies: Start them with mashed or pureed eggs from six months
- Healthy children, adults (including elderly): Eggs can be included as part of a health diet without the need to count or limit. (As long as you’re within reason, like don’t eat 100 eggs a day, ok?)
Easy Everyday Recipes
The cool thing about eggs is that they are affordable and incredibly versatile, so there are so many recipes across different cuisines!
Claire wants to demystify what are considered “proper meals”. “People think, ‘I just had eggs on taste for dinner.’ Whole grain toast with eggs and maybe a tomato or avocado? Nothing wrong with that.”
For her family, she says eggs are easy solution to a busy life. Her go-to egg recipes:
Frittatas: You can put anything in one. Leftover pasta, potatoes, vegetables.
Meal prep boiled eggs: On Sunday, boil six or a dozen and keep it in the fridge.
Banana pancakes: A weekend routine with her kids, she blends a large overripe banana, two eggs and a quarter cup of oats.
Egg fried rice: Scramble a couple of eggs over leftover rice.
Two fried eggs on brown rice: An even easier dish on a busy night. Maybe add some edamame beans, kim chi and thin slices of lettuce or cabbage.
Egg drop soup: (Admittedly, this is MY recommendation. Just google a recipe, but it’s a great soul food especially when sick!)
Claire says there’s always bad news in nutrition: You can’t eat this, everything’s expensive. “We need to celebrate wholefoods… Eggs is one of those things.”
“I love that an affordable wholefood finally has time to shine in this ultra processed food world we live in.”
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