Triglycerides: Why do they matter?
Triglycerides are an important measure of heart health. Here's why triglycerides matter — and what to do if your triglycerides are too high.
If you've been keeping an eye on your blood pressure and cholesterol levels, there's something else you might need to monitor: your triglycerides. Having a high level of triglycerides, a type of fat in your blood, can increase your risk of heart disease. If you didn't even realize you had triglycerides, relax. The same lifestyle choices that promote overall health can help lower your triglycerides, too.
What are triglycerides?
Triglycerides are a type of fat found in your blood. When you eat, your body converts any calories it doesn't need to use right away into triglycerides. The triglycerides are stored in your fat cells. Later, hormones release triglycerides for energy between meals. If you regularly eat more calories than you burn, you may have high triglycerides (hypertriglyceridemia).
What's considered normal?
A simple blood test can reveal whether your triglycerides fall into a healthy range.
Normal — Less than 150 milligrams per deciliter (mg/dL) (less than 1.7 mmol/L)
Borderline high — 150 to 199 mg/dL (1.8 to 2.2 mmol/L)
High — 200 to 499 mg/dL (2.3 mmol/L to 5.6 mmol/L)
Very high — 500 mg/dL or above (5.7 mmol/L or above)
Your doctor will usually check for high triglycerides as part of a test called a lipid panel or lipid profile, which also checks your cholesterol levels. You'll have to fast for nine to 12 hours before blood can be drawn for an accurate triglyceride measurement.
Cholesterol test: Sorting out the lipids
Cholesterol levels: What numbers should you aim for?
What's the difference between triglycerides and cholesterol?
Triglycerides and cholesterol are separate types of fats (lipids) that circulate in your blood. Triglycerides provide your body with energy, and cholesterol is used to build cells and certain hormones. Because triglycerides and cholesterol can't dissolve in blood, they circulate throughout your body with the help of proteins that transport the lipids, called lipoproteins.
High blood cholesterol
Why do high triglycerides matter?
Although it's unclear how, high triglycerides may contribute to hardening of the arteries or thickening of the artery walls (atherosclerosis) — which increases the risk of stroke, heart attack and heart disease.
High triglycerides are often a sign of other conditions that increase the risk of heart disease and stroke as well, including obesity and the metabolic syndrome — a cluster of conditions that includes too much fat around the waist, high blood pressure, high triglycerides, high blood sugar and abnormal cholesterol levels.
Sometimes high triglycerides are a sign of poorly controlled type 2 diabetes, low levels of thyroid hormones (hypothyroidism), liver or kidney disease, or rare genetic conditions that affect how your body converts fat to energy. High triglycerides could also be a side effect of taking medications such as beta blockers, birth control pills, diuretics, steroids or the breast cancer drug tamoxifen.
Arteriosclerosis/atherosclerosis
Stroke
Heart attack
Metabolic syndrome
Type 2 diabetes
Hypothyroidism (underactive thyroid)
Beta blockers
What's the best way to lower triglycerides?
Healthy lifestyle choices are key.
Lose excess pounds. If you're overweight, losing the excess pounds can help lower your triglycerides. Motivate yourself by focusing on the benefits of losing weight, such as more energy and improved health.
Cut back on calories. Remember that excess calories are converted to triglycerides and stored as fat. Reducing your calories will reduce triglycerides.
Avoid sugary and refined foods.
Simple carbohydrates, such as sugar and foods made with white flour, can cause a sudden increase in insulin production. This can increase triglycerides.
Limit the cholesterol in your diet. Aim for no more than 300 milligrams (mg) of cholesterol a day — or less than 200 mg if you have heart disease. Avoid the most concentrated sources of cholesterol, including meats high in saturated fat, egg yolks and whole milk products.
Choose healthier fats. Trade saturated fat for healthier monounsaturated fat, found in olive, peanut and canola oils. Substitute fish high in omega-3 fatty acids — such as mackerel and salmon — for red meat.
Eliminate trans fat.
Trans fat can be found in fried foods and many commercial baked products, such as cookies, crackers and snack cakes. But don't rely on packages that are labeled "trans fat-free." In the United States, if a food contains less than 0.5 grams of trans fat per serving, it can be labeled trans fat-free. Even though those amounts seem small, they can add up quickly if you eat a lot of foods containing small amounts of trans fat. Instead, read the ingredients list. You can tell that a food has trans fat in it if it contains partially hydrogenated oil.
Avoid alcoholic beverages.
is high in calories and sugar and has a particularly potent effect on triglycerides. Even small amounts of alcohol can raise triglyceride levels.
Exercise regularly.
Aim for at least 30 minutes of physical activity on most or all days of the week. Regular exercise can boost "good" cholesterol while lowering "bad" cholesterol and triglycerides. Take a brisk daily walk, swim laps or join an exercise group. If you don't have time to exercise for 30 minutes, try squeezing it in 10 minutes at a time. Take a short walk, climb the stairs at work, or try some sit-ups or push-ups as you watch television.
It's also important to control diabetes and high blood pressure if you have high triglycerides and those conditions.
Weight loss: 6 strategies for success
Dietary fats: Know which types to choose
Trans fat: Avoid this cholesterol double whammy
Alcohol use: Why moderation is key
Fitness programs: 5 steps to getting started
What about medication?
If healthy lifestyle changes aren't enough to control high triglycerides, your doctor may recommend medication. Cholesterol medications such as niacin or fibrates (gemfibrozil or fenofibrate) are often effective for lowering triglycerides. If you also have low high-density lipoprotein (HDL), or "good" cholesterol, or high low-density lipoprotein (LDL), or "bad" cholesterol, your doctor may prescribe cholesterol-lowering statins or a combination of a statin and nicotinic acid or fibrates. Because of the risk of side effects from statins, be sure to tell your doctor if you experience any muscle pain, nausea, diarrhea or constipation.
If your doctor prescribes medication to lower your triglycerides, take the medication as prescribed. And remember the significance of the healthy lifestyle changes you've made. Drug therapy can help — but lifestyle matters, too.
Cholesterol medications: Consider the options
Niacin to boost your HDL 'good' cholesterol
Statins: Are these cholesterol-lowering drugs right for you?
1 comment:
elevated triglycerides
The main reason why triglycerides levels increases is due to poor diet and excessive intake of sugar and alcohol, and foods that are rich in carbohydrates. Triglycerides, along with cholesterol, are the lipids or fatty acids deposited in the body. These are developed from the excess calories that are consumed and not able to burn during physical activity.
elevated triglycerides
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