The effect of dietary fat on the fatty acid composition and cholesterol content of Hy-line and Warren hen eggs

The present study analyzed the effect of dietary fat and strain on the fatty acid and cholesterol contents of eggs over a 20 month-period. Hy-line and Warren hens received three consecutive 7% lipid diets in which the basal constituents of the diet supplied 3% of the fats while the remaining 4% was composed of fats, oils or oleins added to progressively increase polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) levels, while decreasing dietary levels of both saturated fatty acids (SFA) and monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFA). In general, the percentages of most fatty acids in egg lipids were affected by changes in dietary lipids but not by the strain. Data suggest the existence of a dietary threshold for elaidic acid to appear in eggs. Mufa decreased and total PUFA increased throughout the study. The cholesterol egg content was higher at the animal fat plus soybean oil than at the animal fat or the olein plus soybean oil blend. Overall, results showed that changes in dietary lipids influenced fatty acid composition and hence atherogenic and thrombogenic indexes much more than the strain.