Cholesterol in Eggs Drops

Eggs, an object of dietary worry in recent years, contain 22% less cholesterol than calculated in the 1970s, the government said last week.

The Agriculture Department, in a preliminary statement, said better tests and the “refined feeding practices (for laying hens) in use today may account for the apparent difference in cholesterol.”

Officials said the department will revise its figures on the nutritional content of eggs based on tests conducted since July. The department’s last previous information was issued in 1976 and listed the cholesterol content of a large egg as 274 milligrams.

Assuming that eating patterns do not change, “We would expect this new data on eggs to slightly reduce the average intake of cholesterol by the population,” the department said.