Enriched Eggs as a Sustainable Approach to Enhance Omega-3 Status in Elite Athletes

The study looked to identify the benefit of omega-3 enriched eggs on circulating omega-3 fatty acid profile of elite level athletes

Study Overview

• Status: Completed
• Conditions: Suboptimal Omega-3 Index
• Intervention / Treatment: Other: omega-3 enriched eggs; Other: non-enriched eggs

Detailed Description

Study hypothesis: Consuming omega-3 enriched eggs (compared to control) will (1) increase omega-3 index whilst also (2) improving subjective markers of recovery and other health parameters.

Aims & objective:

Overall aim: To investigate the impact of consuming omega-3 enriched eggs blood fatty acid profile among elite level athletes who do not reach omega-3 index targets of 8%, compared to control. Secondary data collected will analyse the impact on health and recovery parameters.

Primary objective: To assess the effect of consuming omega-3 enriched eggs on blood fatty acid response (omega-3 index) in elite level athletes.

Secondary objective: To assess the effect of consuming omega-3 enriched eggs on subjective recovery markers using validated questionnaires (RESTQ-Sport-36, appendix 1; Acute Recovery & Stress Scale, appendix 2) and other health parameters including resting heart rate and blood pressure.

Recruitment Participants will be recruited from Sport Ireland Institute of Sport (SII). SII are partners for this PhD and will provide access for recruitment to those teams/ athletes based in Dublin. Further recruitment will be open to teams across the island of Ireland where potential participants are competing at the highest level within that sport. All relevant permissions will be obtained before commencing any recruitment strategy. All recruitment will initially require approval from the Head of Performance for that sport, this will allow for the researcher to provide athletes with an information sheet, screening questionnaire and consent form. Secondary recruitment will be via a poster which will be put up around the campus. This recruitment will be provided approval by relevant individuals in SII and QUB. The poster will have a QR code which links the interested party to the participant information sheet and screening questionnaire.

Primary objective data collection:

Participants from both omega-3 enriched group and control group will provide a dried blood spot at week 0 (before starting intervention) and post 8-week intervention. The first step is to increase blood flow to the hands; this is done by asking the participant to wash their hands in warm water. The tip of the index finger is prepared with an antibacterial wipe, and this is allowed to dry unassisted. A lancet is then used to draw blood with the first show of blood being wiped away with gauze. The finger is gently squeezed, allowing a blood drop to form. The blood drop is allowed to drop onto the designated spot of the collection card. The collection cards are pre-treated with a proprietary antioxidant treatment called OxyStop, this prevents oxidative loss of PUFAs. The sample is allowed to dry for a few minutes before being sent the same day to a commercial laboratory for analysis (OmegaQuant, University of Stirling, GB).

Co-investigators are familiar with collecting OmegaQuant blood samples through previous professional experience.

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Actual): 17
• Phase: Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• Ireland
  • Dublin
    • Dublin, Dublin, Ireland, D15 Y52H
      • Sport Ireland Institute
• United Kingdom
  • Tyrone
    • Omagh, Tyrone, United Kingdom, BT70 2EH
      • Garvaghey Centre

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: Adult; Older Adult
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: Yes

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• Participants must be elite level female athletes (tier 4 or 5)

Exclusion Criteria:

• Non-smokers
• Must not be taking statins to lower LDL cholesterol levels.
• Must not have high blood pressure (systolic >140/ diastolic >90mmHg)
• Participants must remain injury free (not miss training >1week)
• Baseline omega-3 index of <8%
• Currently include eggs as part of their habitual diet.
• Participants must be willing to consume 14 eggs per week for 8 weeks.

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: Other
• Allocation: Randomized
• Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
• Masking: Single

Number of Arms

2

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Intervention; omega-3 enriched egg (14 eggs weekly for 8 weeks, ~250mg DHA daily).	Other: omega-3 enriched eggs; omega-3 enriched eggs
Placebo Comparator: Control; Non enriched egg group (14 eggs per week for 8 weeks)	Other: non-enriched eggs; non-omega-3 enriched eggs

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Time Frame
omega-3 index	8 weeks

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: Queen's University, Belfast
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: Anne Nugent, Doctorate, Queens University Belfast

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): September 25, 2023
• Primary Completion (Actual): December 9, 2024
• Study Completion (Actual): December 31, 2024

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: November 20, 2025
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: November 28, 2025
• First Posted (Actual): December 10, 2025

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): December 10, 2025
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: November 28, 2025
• Last Verified: November 1, 2025

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Other Study ID Numbers: MHLS 23_68

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

• Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?: NO

Drug and device information, study documents

• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product: No
• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product: No