For years, I bought the cheapest eggs off the shelf in the quantities I needed at the time without giving it much thought. One day, I watched a show that explained how eggs get from the nest to the table. I was surprised that it was weeks after the eggs were laid before they reached the store shelf. Then, some eggs didn't sell. When their packages expired, they were put in another carton with a new date and put on the shelf for sale again. I was shocked. Since then, I've heard about eggs laid by free range chickens, organic eggs, eggs with significantly more omega 3s. In the fall of 2011, I decided to learn more about egg nutrition between the different types of eggs.

First, I wanted to know about free range chicken eggs. Was it really worth the extra money? I learned that chickens roaming around on a pasture produce eggs that have between four and six times the vitamin D based on a study in 2007. The same eggs had less cholesterol and saturated fat. They also had more Omega 3 fatty acids, vitamin E and beta carotene. I have heard that it is healthier to get these vitamins and fatty acids through our food compared to supplements. Supplements tend to be expensive anyway. Depending on the price of the eggs, it may be worthwhile to buy eggs laid by free range chickens.

Next, I researched organic eggs. Organic eggs have no residues from antibiotics or arsenic. Regular store-bought eggs are laid by chickens that have been fed food laced with antibiotics to prevent chickens living in large populations from getting sick. The United States Department of Agriculture did a study comparing organic vs regular eggs found that factory-farmed, cage-free, and free-roaming methods met the quality standards we have come to expect.

Lastly, I looked up information about omega 3 eggs. I bumped into the Purena site. There, they claim that chickens fed their Layena Plus Omega-3 SunFresh had three hundred percent more omega-3 than regular chicken feed. Not only does the feed have more omega-3, it has no hormones, animal fat, animal by-products or antibiotics. The feed does have marigold extract and vitamin E.

So, what did I do with all of this information? My family and I decided to get 7 chicks and raise them from the time they were 2 days old. We started off letting them wander the yard most of the day once they were old enough to go outside. However, we had to limit their free-range time to when we were outside because our Golden Retriever killed one of the chickens. When our chickens were old enough to eat adult chicken food, we decided to feed them Layena Plus Omega-3. Our chickens have been laying eggs for more than a month. I decided to test Purena's claim that their eggs had richer, more golden yolks compared to eggs without the marigold extract and found that the eggs were more golden.