BRUSSELS, May 22 (Xinhua) -- Eating an egg each day appears to be linked to a lower risk of heart disease among middle-aged Chinese, according to a study published online in the British journal Heart.

The study, authored by a group of Chinese scientists, analyzed data from over half a million Chinese aged 30 to 79 from 10 diverse survey sites in China during the period from 2004 to 2008, and have since been followed up upon to determine their morbidity and mortality rates.

"Our findings contribute scientific evidence to the dietary guidelines with regard to egg consumption for the healthy Chinese adult," said the scientists.

The study linked eating an egg a day with lowering the risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD) by 11 percent, ischemic heart disease by 12 percent, major coronary events by 14 percent, hemorrhagic stroke by 26 percent as well as ischemic stroke by 10 percent.

Daily consumers of eggs also have an 18 percent lower risk of CVD death and a 28 percent lower risk of hemorrhagic stroke death compared to non-consumers, it showed.

Eggs are a prominent source of dietary cholesterol, causing the concern that eating too many may be unhealthy. But they also contain high-quality protein, many vitamins and bioactive components. In recent years, more scientific evidence has emerged for the positive impact eggs have on human health.

Previous studies focusing on a link between eating eggs and heart disease mostly had smaller sample sizes, fewer CVD events and were unable to obtain accurate estimates on stroke subtypes, said the Chinese scientists.