This famous slogan was first used in a 1950s and 60s UK advertising campaign for the Egg Marketing Board and I’d really like to re-launch it! At that time, Britain was beginning to swap its traditional, cooked, savoury breakfast for cereals with milk. Egg sales dwindled for a number of decades, however, they’re on the increase again – and for good reason.

Eggs are packed full of high quality protein (12%+) and relatively low in calories (66 each). They contain essential amino acids and are fairly easy to digest. Cooking with them can be incredibly versatile and I think of them as the perfect fast food. You can make scrambled eggs or an omelette in minutes – literally. You can even hard or soft-boil two eggs in the morning and take them with you on a trip or to work. Unbelievably, eggs contain ALL known vitamins except C. They are particularly high in B vitamins as well as containing A, D and some E. Their mineral content is impressive too – they contain iodine, iron, selenium and phosphorous. Yes, they are 9% fat – they’re high in omega 3, monounsaturated fats (as in olive oil) and polyunsatured fats. There is some saturated fat (approx. 28% of the 9%) and I can’t write a better article about why that’s NOT a problem than Chris Kresser here.

Apart from the sugar-laden lures of cereals, egg sales also declined in the 1980s and 1990s because of old and bad research – the results of which are still perpetuating the myth that eggs are high in cholesterol. When I tell people that I have two eggs for breakfast most days, I usually get raised eyebrows and concerns for (a) my blood cholesterol score and, (b) my bowel movements! I’d love to know how the anti-egg campaign is still being waged when all limits on the number of eggs we should eat per week was lifted years ago. Read more here. The cynic in me says that Big Food is working so that we line their pockets again. Breakfast cereals are high profit products – really cheap ingredients, highly processed to make tasty, sugar-filled easy eating which is easy to bring to market. At best, cereals with milk will spike your blood sugar (which does cause high cholesterol – of the worst kind) and give you a crash an hour later so you have to snack on something sugary.

Break the sugar cycle! Swap your breakfast cereals for a spinach or courgette omelette, boiled eggs or scrambled eggs with smoked salmon or bacon … go on, go to work on an egg!