Breast cancer and food confusion are real!

We want to be healthy, eat good food, reduce our toxic burden, and be mindful of our budget.

But how do you know what food labels are telling you about the food you’re thinking of buying?

What do all of these labels mean and what’s best for you?

In this episode, we’ll dig into the truth behind labels when it comes to choosing eggs.

According to Statista.com, in 2023 the estimated consumption of eggs in the U.S. was 281.3 eggs per person.

These nutrition powerhouses contain many vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, protein, and fat, and they’re a good source of heart-healthy nutrients like potassium, folate, and B vitamins.

But are they all created equally?

Check out this episode and learn what you’re getting when you pick up a dozen eggs.

Referred to in this episode:

Work with Laura

Coaching and Programs

90 Days of Wellness

Food Companies

https://grassrootscoop.com/

https://www.farmerjonesfarm.com/

Follow me on Social Media: 

Facebook

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Read the full transcript:

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You're listening to better than before breast cancer with the breast cancer recovery coach. I'm your host, Laura Lummer. I'm a certified life coach, and I'm a breast cancer thriver. In this podcast, I will give you the skills and the insights and the tools to move past the emotional and physical trauma of a breast cancer diagnosis. If you're looking for a way to create a life, that's even better than before breast cancer, you've come to the right place. Let's get started.

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You're listening to Episode 349 have better than before breast cancer. I'm Laura Lummer. And this is our Tuesday terrain talk. So I gotta tell you, I rarely go to the grocery store. I'm very lucky to live in a place where about 100 yards away from me is a little organic grocery store. And a lot of my food I order online, I order my meats from a organic sustainable farm called grassroots Co Op, I order my produce from a regenerative farm where I pick it up here at the grocery store. And my husband who doesn't always eat the same way that I do and isn't as concerned about organic food is IRM. He often orders from the regular grocery store. So typically his routine is on Sundays. He puts in an order he asked me is there anything that you need from the grocery store, and then he goes and picks it up and curbside pickup. I'm not a big fan of grocery shopping, I never have been, which is really weird, because I love to cook. But I don't really like to grocery shop unless I'm super inspired to just go in and create something but rarely. So I go to the grocery store the other day to get some stuff from my husband. And I see this bottle of water. And the bottle of water says no carbs. And I'm thinking, Okay, why would I do anything? There's carbohydrates in water, like what the heck. And then I go over to the meat aisle to grab something for him. And there's chickens and it says hormone free. And I think, of course it is because it's illegal to use hormones to raise chickens. And I just started thinking about food labels. And especially when it comes to eggs some time ago. So it was actually years ago, I was working on food science degree was at Kansas State University working on my food science degree, which going through the meat science portion of that is what turned me to a vegetarian for about a decade who's so gross. Anyway, I do eat meat now. But it I'm kind of picky, and sometimes it grosses me out. But anyway, when it comes to eggs, and food safety and all that, I learned some things that just can't be unlearned when I was working on that degree. So when I see different labels, sometimes I find it a little annoying, because I think it can be very misleading. And for our population for people who are very focused on nourishing their body, and spending money, right eggs are like crazy expensive right now, crazy expensive. And if you're gonna spend money on these expensive groceries, I want you to get what you think you're getting. And if it doesn't matter to you what you get, that's okay, too. But if you want to make an informed decision about food, and you want to make the best choices with your money, I think it's important to be able to differentiate between what is marketing, and what is a true nutrition fact, and what they mean, and what the criteria is. So I thought, let's go ahead and take advantage of this Tuesday terrain talk. And let's talk about eggs. Let's talk about what the real deal is with eggs. Because Eggs are an excellent food. They are an excellent source of protein. They've got lots of choline in them. And I'll tell you one of the very common things I see when I'm working with women I'm looking at their labs, and I'm looking at their DNA is lots of problems and their detoxification pathways, and a increased need for folate. And for choline in their diet. I see this pretty frequently. And eggs are a great source of that they're a good food for calling. So what are we really getting, we're looking at this good food that is expensive. And that, you know, you may have different criteria when it comes to food like animal safety or organic or not. So let's talk about what's actually happening and how you can make sure that you're making the decision that you think you're making. When you're spending. I don't in California Honestly, I was shocked when I went to the grocery store. And it was 18 it was a box of 18 eggs and there are these organic pasture raised eggs. And they were 1399 for 18 eggs, right? Crazy, really expensive. So let's talk about first of all, what the organizations are that oversee egg quality and labeling. So there's two major players, and that's the USDA, or the United States Department of Agriculture. And then there's the FDA, the Food and Drug Administration. And then there's various third party certifications or certification organizations. So the USDA, they set the federal standards for egg grading and ice Grade A and A, and we'll talk a little bit more about that. So the USDA sets the federal standard for egg grading and organic certification. And they're responsible for those labels. They also oversee the National Organic Program, and that's what certifies organic eggs, they set the minimum minimum requirement for labels like free range and organic through the National Organic Program. But that program does not encompass all animal welfare aspects that's looking at something different that I'm going to touch on. And I emphasize sets the minimum requirements, because there's a difference between a minimum requirement and what some third party certification organizations require as far as animal welfare fees base and things like that, and we'll talk about that. So the FDA, their role is really just regulating the labeling of eggs, shell eggs, and that is to ensure that consumers have the proper information and the right labeling regarding the safety, the handling, and the nutritional content of x. So that's the FDA is role. Then there's the third party certification organizations. These are things like Certified Humane animal welfare, American Humane Certified, and they focus on animal welfare, they establish their own standards. And these standards, most often exceed those minimum requirements that are set by the USDA. So these organizations conduct independent audits, and they provide additional certifications. And basically, it's done to assure and insure consumers that that animals have been treated humanely. So these third party certifications come with additional expenses like application and certification fees, inspection and audit fees, compliance costs, and record keeping and documentation and sometimes even education. So the record keeping and documentation can mean that they have to show that they're training people on whatever standards it is that these certification companies require. So people who are selling eggs may not always go for those certifications, because it's a lot to do. It's a lot of extra work, and it's a lot of money. But the benefit to them is that consumers will have more confidence in it when they see it. So sometimes they may increase their selves if they get these certifications, because some consumers are looking specifically for those labels. So let's break down what the labels mean. Let's start with the grades we see Grade A Grade A Grade B, I don't think I've ever seen a Grade B egg in a grocery store. But let's talk about what what these actually are. So the grade A are the highest quality X. The criteria is they have a thick, firm white, and they have high round yolks, you would think every egg has that right but they don't. Their shells are supposed to be clean and unbroken. And if you're looking for eggs that you want to fry or you want to poach eggs that you want to eat Grade A is the best choice because they're going to hold their shape really well. Grade A are high quality eggs and they're similar to AAA, but they have slightly less firm egg whites. And they're the most common grade that you're going to find in the grocery store. Again, you can eat them for all purposes. Grade B eggs have thinner whites and flatter yolks. And they're usually used in liquid or powdered egg products rather than sold fresh in stores. So if you're buying those containers look like little tiny milk container filled with egg whites. That's probably you're getting a grade B egg. So what's the difference? What makes an A versus a B versus a a. There are several different factors. One of them is the age of the egg. So freshness is a really key factor and as eggs age their whites become thinner and their yolks flatten and this is just due to the natural breakdown of protein and the loss of carbon dioxide which affects the eggs pH balance. Another thing that affects the quality of the egg the grade of the egg is the soaring conditions. So proper refrigeration slows down the aging process and it maintains the quality of the egg white and yolk whereas poor storage can accelerate and increase the rate that the eggs decline in quality. Another factor, as you could imagine, is the hens health and diet that hatch that egg or drop that egg. Do you call it don't hatch if it doesn't hatch, what do you call it when a hand drops an egg? I haven't looked that up. So the health and the diet of the hen can affect the initial quality of the egg. hens that are really well nourished and healthy tend to produce higher quality eggs was firmer whites and more robust egg yolks. Handling and transportation, rough handling and transportation can cause internal defects. And it weakens or breaks the yolk, and it leads to lower grades of eggs. So there's some interesting ways like how do you know right? The egg is inside the shell? How do you know the quality of the egg white or the egg yolk? Well, some of the ways that these are assessed are methods like candling, which is holding the egg up to a light source to inspect the interior of the egg randomly, sometimes the eggs are broken just to observe the characteristics directly. And the grading process assures that consumers are receiving like consistency. So you're going to pick up great AAA eggs that are going to meet those specific quality standards. So you can use them for whatever you want. And have you ever wonder like, you get see it on a carton, right? And it's as large as you think? How do you know it's large? Like what's a larger thing? What's the average size egg what makes this egg larger than this one a P we have you ever seen a peewee egg in a grocery store? I don't think I've seen one, but they exist. And the way that the size is determined is by the weight of a dozen eggs. So a jumbo egg, you get 30 ounces to a dozen. An extra large egg is 27 ounces to a dozen. A large egg is 24 ounces to a dozen, medium 21 ounces to a dozen small 18 ounces to a dozen and peewee 15 ounces to a dozen. Interesting, right. So now, if you ever are going by a recipe, and it tells you the ounces that you want for an egg, you'll know that a large egg is going to be 24 ounces for a dozen. So it's basically two ounces an egg right kind of interesting. So now let's talk about what I think are some really important labels. These are the ones that I look for, I think these are the ones most people look for. And they're called production method labels. This includes free range, pasture raised, organic, all of that kind of stuff. So we see these eggs all the time. And we think like we picture a chicken, a chicken is supposed to be out in the pasture, right? They're eating bugs, they're running around, they get some chicken feed, but most of the time they get to eat. They're like omnivores, right, chickens will eat a lot of stuff. And so we kind of picture when we hear this free range, we picture these happy chickens running around eating their bugs in the pasture. But that's not really what happens when we see the label free range eggs. So what that label means is that these hens, the hens that produce those eggs have to have some access to the outdoors. The specific outdoor access can vary. There's not a one set standard, but the people who produce them have to demonstrate that the hens have access to the outdoors during their laying cycle. Oh, that's what it is right? A hands on hatching egg, it's laying an egg cheese. Why don't I think of that. Here's the lay the eggs. Anyway. So what this can mean is that you can have a huge hen house with literally 1000s of hens in there. And you can have a small window that hen house. So let's say that it's a five by five outdoor area and there's this little square that kind of opens up in the the hens can walk out there to that area. As long as that door that window is not closed and the hens can walk outside. That is considered free range. Now, I use the measurement five by five. And that might meet some of the requirements because again, there's not one standard for size, necessarily, it's one is just access to the outdoors. And then there's a different range of what outdoor means how much space that has to include. So this is another place where those third party certifications come in. Because the USDA isn't really specific on how much outdoor access or even the quality of that. But something like a five by five square area for a hen house full of 1000s of chickens would probably be considered insufficient for most of us, most of us consumers, and definitely for animal welfare advocates. So that's where those third party organizations often come in where it's the welfare of the animal. But when you see free range egg, that what that is what it means it means that there is access somewhere in that henhouse that the hen could go outside if it wanted to have access to the outdoors during its laying season. It's not this happy picture of happy hens running around eaten books. So pasture raised, this is different pasture raised are those hens that are raised on pastures and they have lots of outdoor space and they have the ability to roam and to forage. Now, this label is not officially defined by the USDA, and it is most often verified by third third party certifications like the Certified Humane certification. And typically those hands have to have at least 108 square feet of outdoor space each. And this is interesting because this was another thing that I learned when I was working on food science years ago, is that there's actually happy space for every animal. And I remember what I learned about that I thought, oh, that applies to humans, too. You know, we're like, I need some space, or you know, there's just a space we feel comfortable and functioning in around other people will same for animals, there's knowledge that there's a specific amount of space that if a cow has this much space, or a goat has this much space where chicken has this much space, then that animal is going to thrive that's like its personal bubble, right. So it's kind of neat. When it's a pasture raised chicken to know that they're going to have to have however many hens you have, you're going to have to have them on land that allows each chicken to have at least 108 square feet of outdoor space to roam on, and in my opinion, happier chicken, happier egg. Then we've got the organic label. So to be labeled organic eggs have to come from hens that are fed organic feed that is free of synthetic pesticides, herbicides, GMOs, or genetically modified organisms in their food, and they cannot be fed any other animal byproducts. Gross, right? We're feeding chickens, other dead animal products, not cool, but it happens not farm raised animals. animal farming operations is where these animals are often fed other animal byproducts even if they're not an omnivorous or a carnivorous animal. So organic hands have to have continuous year round access to the outdoors, except in specific conditions like inclement weather, or if they're super young baby chicks, or they have health and safety issues. But for the normal chicken, that's not the right age, they have to have year round access to outdoor quality, outdoor space. So that space has to provide a suitable environment that encourages the hens to go outside. So not just a tiny window that says yeah, you could go outside if you want. And if you can find that window over the 1000s of chickens you're going to trample over. But in an organic chicken, they have to have access to shade, shelter, fresh air, direct sunlight, and the ability to engage in natural behaviors like foraging and dust bathing. So the outdoor area, even cooler has to be covered with vegetation, and the soil has to be maintained to prevent the degradation. So the National Organic Program does not specify how much space exactly that hen has to have. But it does require that the outdoor space is adequate to allow the hens to participate in their natural behaviors. And that's really important, right? Again, happy animal. Think about us like what I mean we're eating eggs, and these eggs are the product of these animals. And now if we think about as female human beings that produce our own eggs, our own ovum, we know that when we go through stress, we know this now through science, right? That our experiences when we are pregnant, are experiences even we're not pregnant or affecting the quality of our eggs. But even when we are pregnant, our experiences, our level of stress is having an impact on the genetic makeup of the child that is growing inside of us. And so here we've got chickens, don't we want them to be as happy and as healthy as possible if we're going to be eating food that comes from them? I know I do. Okay, so then we have what's called nutritional and health claims. You might see on a carton of eggs, it says Omega three enriched. How do you do that? Right? How do you give a higher omega three content to an egg than they like have a little syringe and shoot it in there? No. These eggs actually contain higher levels of omega three fatty acids, usually because these hens are fed flaxseed or fish oil, or there's something else in the hands diet to increase their intake of omega three fatty acids. And then another one you'll see enriched is vitamin D. And that means that these hens are to have higher levels of vitamin D, again, typically due to what they're fed what's in their diet and their exposure to light. So those hens that are in a giant hen house with just a small access to go outside are not going to have as much UV light as organic chickens or pasture raised chickens are not going to be out in the sun. Then we've got these other labels and claims and this is really interesting because there are the labels we just talked about, which has certifications attached to them, right we're companies, the USDA or the FDA or some third party organization looks at it audits it and says okay, we proved it. We give you the certification. Should, but there are other claims that are literally just marketing claims like what I saw on the water bottle, right? It said, no carbs are carb free. Well, water is carb free. So that's a marketing claim, right? It's not that it's untrue. But it's just that it is said in a way that makes us think of it in a different way. Right? So we're low carb all the time. And we see a bottle that says low carb, or we see a chicken it says, And we hear hormones are bad donate hormones, and the chicken says hormone free, even though all chickens are hormone free, or like added hormone free. But it's a marketing claim to make us think about that product in a different way that wants us that want that makes us want to purchase it. And I'm tripping over my tongue today. All right. So other labels and claims are things like farm fresh or all natural. And these labels are often used just for marketing purposes, right? They're not necessarily incorrect, because all natural. Yeah, it's a chicken egg. And naturally, chickens lay eggs. So it's not false to say that it's all natural, farm fresh, you got it from a chicken that was on a farm, whether that was a factory farm, or a lovely organic farm. It's not untrue. But it's just that putting that label on that product gives us a vision of something right, just like I described, those hens when I see free range, and I think, oh, you know, Home on the Range, the chickens are out there and happy, farm fresh, what does that bring to mind? You think of like, oh, somebody got up in the morning and walked out on their farm and collected some eggs, right. So it gives us a picture of something that makes us want to buy it. So these labels again, they are not regulated by the FDA or the USDA. And they do not reflect necessarily any kind of specific production method or any kind of quality standard there specifically for marketing. There's another label that Certified Humane. I spoke about that a couple of times already. And this label indicates that the eggs came from farms that meet specific animal welfare standards that are set by third party organizations. Non GMO, this is an interesting one, because you might think when you see non GMO, that you're getting an organic chicken, that that's not the same organic egg, but that's not the same. So non GMO just means that the hens that are are fed a diet that had no genetically modified organisms in the diet, and that label is verified by a third party certification. But it doesn't necessarily mean that it's organic, because as you heard me talk about the organic eggs. Those chickens have specific kind of lifestyle requirements, right? They have space requirements and quality of life requirements in addition to their diet, but non GMO is talking only about the diet of that chicken, which still, if you're gonna choose non GMO over another one, I'd rather have a non GMO chicken. So I think one of the things that we're really concerned about, especially as people who are trying to be as healthy as possible and have had a breast cancer diagnosis, one is the hormones that we talked about. And hormones again, are not allowed to be used in the raising of poultry. So no chickens should be having hormones. And antibiotics are another big deal. So in conventional farming, antibiotics are only supposed to be used for therapeutic purposes, which means to treat sick animals or to prevent disease. So this means that they can be used prophylactically meaning that animals not necessarily sick. But there's so many animals crammed into such a small dirty space, that we're going to feed them antibiotics to hopefully prevent them from getting sick. And they can also sometimes be used for growth promotion, antibiotics and conventional farming. The use of antibiotics in animal agriculture is regulated by the FDA. And recent regulations are also requiring that there's veterinary oversight for the use of medically important antibiotics in animal feed and water. So you've got the FDA looking at it and the V F D. But there's a lot of leeway in how antibiotics can be used when it comes to chickens. So in organic farming, chickens can not have antibiotics. It is completely prohibited from organic chicken farming. So even if a chicken get sick and must be treated with antibiotics, it loses its organic status and it cannot be sold as organic. In organic raising of chickens and producing of eggs. These organic farmers use alternative health practices like probiotics, herbal remedies, and just overall better animal husbandry. dri practices to maintain the health of the flock. And then also some of these higher welfare certification programs have very strict guidelines on antibiotic use. They generally allow antibiotics only for therapeutic purposes. And they prohibit completely, they're used for growth promotion, or for routine disease prevention. So even though organic eggs may be really expensive, which they are expensive, I'm not gonna lie, they're expensive. And you know what, this just pops into my head, as I'm saying, My stepdaughter, she lives in Florida, we just came back from her farm a couple of weeks ago and have a bunch of chickens. And I love going out is like the coolest thing to go out and just get the fresh eggs from the chicken. And she's always got this beautiful basket of eggs sitting out because eggs don't have to be refrigerated unless they've been washed. When eggs are laid, they actually have a film coating on them that's protecting that egg from the porousness of the eggshell from any bacteria getting into it. But once you wash it, you've got to refrigerate them. So she's got this lovely basket of eggs. And she's got many different kinds of chickens out there. So she's got little eggs, and big eggs, and blue and brown, they're all different colors. And when you break into these pasteurized organic eggs, the yolk of the egg is like this beautiful bright orange, right? It's like a sun, the sun at sunrise is is gorgeous color. And it's just so interesting to see the difference in an egg that you can get off of a farm and the egg that you buy from a grocery store. So one of the things I think is really cool is a lot of people even who live in the cities are turning to having chickens at their house. And I know a couple of people who have built chicken coops now and keep them out in their yard and finding people like that they can say, Hey, can I buy a dozen eggs or so from you here and there. I mean, I think that's a kind of a cool resource to look for local farmers, farmers markets, things of that nature, I think are really valuable resources, other than going to like my organic grocery store where it's ridiculous what they charge for, you know, a 18 Organic eggs. So kind of using resources wisely and looking around for where you might get better access to organic eggs. Or, you know, if you have a nice sized backyard and you want to put a little chicken coop back there, maybe get some eggs of your own. I would if I had a backyard, I think that'd be pretty cool. But I live in a condo, so I have a patio that would not properly accommodate chickens. So let's talk about one of the most important things. What's the nutritional value? Right? How does all of this stuff actually affect the nutrition of an egg or all eggs created the same? So if I buy an egg that's pasture raised versus organic versus free range? Am I getting the same nutrition? And the answer is no. And probably from what we've already discussed, you could have gathered that because different hens in their different environments with their different diets, their bodies are going to be affected differently. Right. So standard feed hens that are fed a conventional diet typically produce eggs that meet standard nutrition profiles. And let me explain what I mean by that. When we look at the RDA, right, the recommended daily allowance of nutrients, we're looking at the minimum requirements for a human being right these standards are set by the government, it says you got to get the minimum amount here to maintain the average healthy body. And so if you've got a hen that's being raised in conventional farming and being fed a conventional diet, that hen is supposed to be producing an egg that meets the minimum nutritional profiles of an egg. When we have hens that are fed, enrich feed. So we saw saw or heard about the Omega three enhanced or vitamin D and and so these hens are fed diets that are enriched with nutrients. So they're given vitamin D more fatty acids, specific grains, and they typically produce eggs that have a higher level of those nutrients, then you've got the ones that have organic feed. And as we just talked about, that's what those hands are fed, they're fed organic feed. And that has a tendency to influence the nutritional profile, due to the different composition of the feed like we are what we eat, and so is every other living thing. But another thing that affects the nutrient content of the eggs is their living conditions. And I think I mean, we know this, right, we can appreciate this, we can relate to this. Like if you're in a stressful time in a stressful place. If you live a place where you're staying at a place where you don't feel safe, you don't feel comfortable, you don't feel happy. And you know you're under constant stress. You feel that in your body, right. And so So do animals. So living conditions can have an effect on the nutrient content. hens that have access to outdoors can forage for natural foods like insects and plants. They may be producing eggs that have different nutrient profiles compared to the hens that are confined to big hen houses and very confined condition. So even though cage free hens have a lot of space to move around in this giant hen house, their diet and their egg nutrition might be very similar to conventionally raised hens, because they're fed the same feed and they don't have that access to go forwards for bugs and be in the sun. And then like I just was talking to you about my stepdaughters farm. specific breeds of hens produce different kinds of eggs that are different sizes, different shell colors, and they can have slight differences in their nutritional content. But what we do know is that eggs that come from hens that are able to forage on pastures, eat bugs and plants, and be outside in the sun have higher levels of antioxidants that are very beneficial, actually, for Eye Health. So there you have it, everything you ever wanted to know about an egg, and maybe more than you cared to know. But so you don't have to go back and listen to this every time you're thinking about what did she say? And what kind of an egg do I want? And what do I look for, I put together a little handout that you can download as a reference, you can find that at the breast cancer recovery coach.com forward slash eggs, or you can click on the link right below and download that. And it's got all the information that I gave you here on the podcast, so you can understand what the different labels mean, and make a decision on what's important for you. So if you're thinking right now, well, what's the best egg? What

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should I eat? I mean, it's up to you, what's important to you? what's meaningful to you? And what can you afford? So I think sometimes, too, when we're taking budget into consideration, and I think don't quote me, because I'm not 100%, I just heard this statistic somewhere, I probably shouldn't even say it, but just know, this is what the caveat, I heard something that there's been like a 30% increase in the price of groceries over the last two years. I don't know if that's 100% True. But I do know that groceries are more expensive, and they're getting more expensive. So what if you can't always afford an organic egg, but you know that it's maybe got a better nutrition profile. Or maybe you just like you know, the animal husbandry that's involved in it, maybe sometimes you can rotate them outright, or definitely look for people that may be close to you, or local farmers that sell their eggs. And that can be a good resource that might not be as expensive as organic eggs at a grocery store. Alright, so get your free download. And if you really want to dig in even more to this heart centered approach to health, check out my 90 days of wellness, you can find that on my website, the breast cancer recovery coach.com, where you can spend 90 days just really looking at your own body and what's important to you and how you connect to food, how you connect, just like we talked about with animals, how you're impacted by things like stress, and how you can reduce it, different foods, different ways of eating different types of eating different lifestyles that impact your body, and really dig into what works for you and what small steps you can take. This is an excellent introductory program, if you're really thinking like, I want to just start changing everything and become healthier. I don't know where to start. I think 90 days of wellness is a really gentle, non judgmental, really cool program to start. And when you're in 90 days of wellness, you get access to come to some group coaching call so you can ask me your questions and I can help you with that as well. Then, of course, there's the creme de la crumb, my metabolic health coaching program where we dig into all of your biometrics, and that includes coaching, looking at labs looking at genetics, I mean, this one is amazing and leaves no stone uncovered. And you can find all that on my website, the breast cancer recovery coach.com and just click on coaching and programs or click the link where you're listening to or watching this podcast and get all the details. If you have any questions you can always email me reach out Laura at the breast cancer recovery coach.com I'll be happy to answer anything. All right. Have a wonderful day. Enjoy your eggs and I hope you found this helpful