The 2025 Dietary Guidelines for Americans: eggs are a whole, nutrient rich food that continue to be recommended across the lifespan

The 2025 Dietary Guidelines for Americans (2025 DGA) emphasizes whole nutrient-rich foods as the basis of a healthy dietary pattern, and protein foods, including eggs, are recommended to be prioritized at every meal. Eggs are known for their high-quality protein and unique set of nutrients that support health across the lifespan:

Pregnancy and Lactation: Eggs contain various amounts of all the nutrients recognized by the American Academy of Pediatrics as necessary for early brain development, including 25% DV for choline [1, 2]. Beyond the contribution of essential nutrients, there is growing evidence that eggs are more than the sum of their individual dietary components, including potential interactions of choline, lutein + zeaxanthin, and DHA in relation to measures of fetal neurodevelopment [3]. These data support the value of eating eggs as a whole food source of nutrients during pregnancy and lactation.

Infants: Eggs are an important first food for babies starting around 6 months of age, not only to help meet essential nutrient needs, but also to reduce the risk of allergy to eggs [4-7].

Children and Adolescents: Adolescents have the worst diet quality of any subgroup of the population [8]. Eggs can increase the nutrient quality in the diet of adolescents [9] and an egg a day can help children improve intake for choline, lutein + zeaxanthin [10].

Middle Age: Data from the Rancho Bernardo cohort suggest that egg consumption in middle age may be related to better cognitive performance later in life [11], which supports the benefits of lifelong healthy eating.

Aging Adults: Recent data from the Rush Memory and Aging Cohort found a relationship between egg consumption and lower risk of Alzheimer’s dementia, a relationship driven by dietary choline [12]. Additionally, the American Heart Association recognizes the nutritional benefits of eggs and recommends up to 2 eggs per day within the context of a heart-healthy diet for healthy older adults [13]. High quality protein, choline, vitamin B₁₂, lutein + zeaxanthin, and vitamin D are some of the dietary components eggs contribute to the diet that are particularly important during aging [14].

Importantly, the 2025 DGA does not mention dietary cholesterol at all. The absence of discussion about dietary cholesterol in the 2025 DGA aligns with FDA’s new definition of healthy [15]. The vast majority of the scientific literature indicates eggs can be enjoyed as part of a healthy dietary pattern [16], and within recommended limits of saturated fat, sodium, and added sugars, consistent with the new dietary guidelines [17].

Overall, there is no change for egg recommendations. Real eggs are a nutrient-rich whole food that continue to be recommended as part of a healthy dietary pattern for Americans. Even better, eggs pair well with other nutrient-rich foods and make it easier to eat healthy. See the Egg Nutrition Center’s recipe ideas of how you might pair eggs with other healthy foods.