Eggs: Not All They're Cracked Up to Be
- Linda Kolton
- Mar 24
- 4 min read
Eggs aren't all they're cracked up to be.
This dietary staple has been in the spotlight as prices soar and availability declines reminding us of the inevitable struggle of supply and demand. The impact of avian flu on hens has been devastating. If the virus doesn't kill them, forced culling does. Culling is used to contain the spread of the virus by "depopulating" or mass euthanizing of birds who may have been exposed. Fewer hens...fewer eggs.
Consider the Egg
The avian flu presents us with an opportunity to consider The Egg. Have you ever wondered how an egg ends up in your shopping cart or on your plate? Do you believe eggs are a healthy part of your diet? Does it seem more ethical to eat eggs than chickens? Or cows? Let's explore.
Eggs: Healthy or Not?
We know headlines change...today something is revered as being healthy, tomorrow maybe not. Rather than debate whether eggs have health benefits for humans, let's consider just the some of the indisputable scientific evidence about the downsides and you can decide for yourself.
Eggs contain high levels of saturated fat. In fact, 60% of the calories in an egg come from fat. Saturated fats can cause problems with cholesterol levels, which can increase the risk of heart disease.
The average sized egg has more cholesterol than a Big Mac. Research tells us that eating high-cholesterol foods is linked to increased blood cholesterol levels and heart disease, as well as diabetes and prostate and colorectal cancers.
High levels of cholesterol and saturated fat strongly link egg consumption to diabetes risk. Eating a diet high in fat can contribute to insulin resistance, as the fat interferes with insulin’s ability to bring glucose from the blood into the cells. Studies show that those who consume three or more eggs per week increase their risk for diabetes, with the risk increasing as the number of eggs consumed is increased.
The Ethics of Eggs
Many choose ignorance when it comes to thinking about where their scrambled eggs, hamburger, or chicken cutlet comes from because knowing can lead to conflict and despair. It's difficult to think about these things and for many of us, it feels even harder to change our ways.
It's important to know the egg industry, like all industries that exploit animals, is a cruel one. Despite terms like, "free-range", "cruelty-free", "locally raised", and "backyard chickens", they all have the same dark side.
People think that since hens lay eggs anyway, we might as well eat them. Let's look at how many eggs a hen lays. Years ago, a hen might lay 10 to 12 eggs a year. Laying eggs is painful, not unlike childbirth. Once big profits motivated the egg industry, birds were manipulated by science and today one hen is lays up to 300 eggs per year. The toll on the health and longevity of a hen is significant so the normal lifespan of 5 to 10 years is cut to approximately 2 years at the end of which, hens are slaughtered and sold to be used in foods like soups, stews, and pet food.
Industrial hen housing is overcrowded and filled with the toxic stench of ammonia from bird waste. Living conditions are stressful, painful, and involve cruel practices such as debeaking (without anesthesia) to keep hens from pecking each other to death in the overcrowded conditions. Birds are often so crowded they can't reach water or food and die as a result. The list of atrocities for hens born into industrial agriculture are gruesome and heartbreaking.
What about backyard flocks?
Chicks for backyard flocks are generally ordered by mail. Roughly 50% of the chicks born in hatcheries who do the mail order business are male. Roosters are not wanted, so these unnecessary male chicks who are just 1-3 days old are ground up alive or heaped into plastic bags or bins and suffocated. Backyard hens come at the expense of their brothers. And can you imagine the terror and stress involved for the tiny chicks who are packed in boxes and shipped? Hatcheries overfill shipments to account for the chicks who die in transit and who are dead within days after arrival.
Keeping hens in the backyard is an expensive and labor-intensive proposition. They must be fed, watered, and cared for daily. Provisions must be made for safety from predators, weather, and illness. There's medical care to consider and paying for "hen sitting" when owners want to go on vacation also adds up. And when the hens stop laying, will owners continue to care for them with no egg payback? Their fate may include being "set free" in surroundings that are unsafe or being sold or killed for food.
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