Triglycerides A variety of fat that's stored in adipose tissue and circulates within the blood. Your body makes triglycerides or gets them from the food you eat.
High triglycerides
Your body needs some triglycerides. However, high triglycerides in your blood are related to a Increased risk of heart disease and stroke.
Until recently, triglycerides received less attention when heart risk than LDL and HDL levels of cholesterol. There is little doubt that very high levels (1,000 mg/dL or more) are problematic and may result in acute pancreatitis.
What levels of triglycerides are dangerous?
But what about treating low triglycerides? Recent evidence suggests that you must work to lower your triglyceride levels if you've got them, especially if you've got heart disease or other conditions reminiscent of diabetes, hypertension or smoking. There are risk aspects.
Triglyceride levels |
|
|
normal 
|
Less than 150* |
|
Borderline high |
150-199 |
|
high |
200-499 |
|
Very high |
500 or more |
|
*All values in milligrams per deciliter Source: National Cholesterol Education Program. |
|
Triglycerides might be certainly one of the symptoms of metabolic syndrome, which increases the danger of heart attack or stroke.
People with metabolic syndrome are several times more more likely to have a heart attack or stroke. Eventually, the danger of developing diabetes increases much more.
A syndrome, by definition, is a gaggle of signs and symptoms that occur together attributable to an underlying condition. For metabolic syndrome, this group includes abdominal obesity (as measured by the waistline), hypertension, high blood sugar, low HDL cholesterol — and yes, high triglyceride levels.
Triglycerides and HDL
Triglycerides and HDL are metabolically linked and sometimes have an inverse relationship: as triglycerides go up, HDL goes down – and vice versa. But this shouldn't be at all times the case. People can have “isolated” high triglycerides without low HDL levels, and research is now showing that prime triglycerides are an independent risk factor for heart disease, no matter HDL.
What causes high triglyceride levels?
Factors that may raise your triglyceride levels include:
- Being or being obese obesity
- Diabetes
- smoking cigarettes
- Excessive alcohol consumption
- Some medicines
- An underactive thyroid (hypothyroidism)
- Some genetic disorders
How to Lower High Triglyceride Levels
Many of the steps you must take to lower triglycerides are the identical ones you must take to guard your heart and overall health. Your doctor will advise you on steps you'll be able to take to lower high triglycerides. Some of those steps may include:
- Regular exercise
- drop some pounds
- Avoid sugar/refined carbs.
- Limit alcohol intake.
- Quit smoking
- Get enough sleep.
- Manage stress levels.
How to Lower Triglyceride Levels with Medication
If you're taking a statin to lower your LDL, a side profit could also be lowering triglyceride levels. Depending on the dose, statins can lower triglycerides by 20%–40%.
Omega-3 fats in fish and fish oil capsules are an alternative choice for lowering triglycerides. For very high triglyceride levels, your doctor may prescribe a high-dose omega-3 medication.
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