Omelets are a popular breakfast item made with beaten eggs, cooked in fat, and usually filled with vegetables, meat and cheese. A cheese omelet might seem like a light breakfast, lunch or dinner option, but often contains a high amount of calories, fat and cholesterol. Understand how your preparation methods and ingredient choices affect the nutritional value of a cheese omelet.
Calories and Macronutrients
A two-egg omelet made with 1 oz. of American cheese contains 285 calories. Of the 21 g of fat, 8 g are saturated. The omelet provides 18 g of protein and just a trace amount of carbohydrates. Using more eggs or a greater amount of cheese will increase these numbers.
Additional Nutrients
A two-egg omelet made with 1 oz. of American cheese provides 18 percent of the recommended dietary allowance for vitamin A, based on a 2,000-calorie diet. It also offers 11 percent of the RDA for iron, 20 percent for calcium, 28 percent for vitamin B12, 31 percent for phosphorus, 12 percent for folate, 43 percent for selenium and 35 percent for riboflavin. Egg yolks are a source of the antioxidant lutein, essential for vision health.
Alternatives
Using a different type of cheese changes some of the nutrition information of your omelet. Use cheddar cheese in lieu of American and your omelet totals 305 calories with 23 g of fat. A lower-fat cheese such as mozzarella brings the calorie count down to 263 calories and the fat content to 18 g. Both mozzarella and cheddar offer more calcium per serving than American cheese, 20 to 22 percent versus 14 percent of the RDA. Making an American cheese omelet with four egg whites instead of two whole eggs saves you 128 calories and 12 g of fat. Another alternative is to make an American cheese omelet with 1 oz. cheese, one egg and two egg whites. This version contains fewer calories and fat grams -- 196 calories and 14 g of fat -- while still providing you the nutrition of the yolk. Cooking your omelet in a non-stick pan sprayed with cooking spray versus cooking it in a generous amount of oil or butter may also reduce the calorie content.
Cholesterol Concerns
One egg, made into an omelet without cheese, contains 217 mg of cholesterol. If you make it into a two-egg omelet with 1 oz. of American cheese, you will consume 452 mg of cholesterol. Using cheddar or cream cheese in the omelet adds another 11 mg to 13 mg of cholesterol. The American Heart Association advises you keep cholesterol intake below 300 mg daily. While eggs offer essential nutrients and may be part of a healthy diet, limiting other sources of cholesterol during days you eat them is advised.
Considerations
Many restaurants prepare omelets with three eggs and more than 1 oz. of cheese. For example, a veggie cheese omelet from Denny's contains 460 calories, 33 g of fat -- 12 g of which are saturated -- and 740 mg of cholesterol. Consider ordering omelets made with cholesterol-free egg whites and asking them to be light on the cheese and heavy on the vegetables.
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