If you're overweight and eating a low-carb diet, swapping out bread and sugar for eggs will bump up your cholesterol intake from food—but your blood fats won't get worse after a year.

We analyzed the available evidence and found that, in overweight adults following a low-carb diet, replacing refined grains and sugars with eggs increases dietary cholesterol intake without worsening blood lipid levels over the course of a year [1]. This pattern was observed across all studies reviewed, with no conflicting results found. What we’ve found so far suggests that when people reduce their intake of processed carbs like bread and sugar and add eggs instead, their bodies respond in a way that doesn’t lead to negative changes in blood fats—such as triglycerides or LDL particles—even though they’re consuming more cholesterol from food. This doesn’t mean eggs “lower” cholesterol or that high cholesterol intake is always safe—it simply shows that, in this specific context, the expected rise in blood cholesterol from eggs doesn’t appear to translate into a decline in lipid health over 12 months. The evidence we’ve reviewed is limited to this one scenario: overweight individuals on a low-carb diet. We don’t know if the same pattern holds for people with different body types, metabolic conditions, or dietary patterns. Also, “blood lipids” here refers to measurable fats in the blood, like triglycerides and cholesterol particles, not long-term heart disease outcomes. We don’t have enough data to say whether this change affects other health markers, or what happens after one year. But based on what we’ve reviewed so far, swapping sugar and refined grains for eggs in this group doesn’t seem to harm blood fat levels, even with higher cholesterol intake. For someone overweight and eating fewer carbs, adding eggs instead of toast or pastries may not raise your risk for unhealthy blood fat changes—but it’s still worth watching how your body responds over time.