Triglycerides are the most typical type of fats within the physique. Your physique shops and makes use of this kind of fats for vitality between meals. If the extent of triglycerides in your blood is elevated, it might imply you’re at excessive threat for well being issues.
Learn extra about triglycerides, together with what causes excessive triglyceride ranges and find out how to decrease them.
When you eat, the additional energy, sugar, and alcohol that your physique doesn’t want immediately is transformed into triglycerides and saved in fats cells. When you want vitality, hormones launch the triglycerides.
If you usually eat extra high-carbohydrate meals than you burn, you would have a excessive triglyceride degree.
High triglyceride ranges (hypertriglyceridemia) are thought of a high-risk issue for narrowing of the arteries (atherosclerosis) which might result in stroke, heart attack, and peripheral arterial disease (PAD). If your triglyceride ranges are excessive, you would be at excessive threat for pancreatitis (irritation of the pancreas) and liver disease.
According to the
- complete ldl cholesterol
- HDL ldl cholesterol
- LDL ldl cholesterol
- triglycerides
Your physician might request that you simply keep away from meals (fast) for 8 to 12 hours earlier than the take a look at. Results are usually out there inside a number of days. Your physician will make suggestions based mostly on the degrees indicated in your take a look at.
NOTE: The outcomes proven on this desk are based mostly on a fasting state and are measured as milligrams of triglycerides per deciliter of blood (mg/dl).
How usually do you have to be examined?
The American Heart Association (AHA) suggests that individuals over 20 years previous, are examined each 4 to six years. Based in your well being, your physician might counsel testing extra usually. The AHA additionally recommends that youngsters be checked as soon as between the ages of 9 and 11 and as soon as between the ages of 17 and 21.
Your triglyceride ranges could possibly be excessive based mostly on components corresponding to:
Higher than regular triglyceride ranges might put you in danger for arteriosclerosis (hardening of the arteries or thickening of the artery partitions), coronary heart assault, stroke, and coronary heart illness. If your triglyceride ranges are excessive, you’re in danger for pancreatitis and liver illness.
The three major methods to decrease excessive triglyceride ranges are:
Healthy life-style selections that decrease excessive triglyceride ranges embody:
- Diet. Avoid simple carbohydrates (corresponding to sugar and meals made with white flour or fructose), trans fat, and meals with hydrogenated oils or fat. Instead of the fats present in meats, select more healthy plant-based fat (corresponding to olive oil and canola oil). Replace pink meat with fish excessive in omega-3 fatty acids (corresponding to mackerel or salmon). Limit or keep away from alcohol consumption (excessive in energy and sugar)
- Exercise. Physical exercise: The American Heart Association (AHA) recommends a weekly minimal of 40 minutes of average depth cardio train, 3 to 4 instances each week.
- Weight. Because further energy are transformed to triglycerides and saved as fats, when you cut back your energy, you’ll cut back triglycerides. Target and preserve a wholesome weight with food regimen and train.
Other life-style adjustments to assist decrease triglycerides embody;
If wholesome life-style adjustments aren’t sufficient to manage excessive triglycerides, your physician would possibly suggest prescription medicines, together with statins, corresponding to rosuvastatin calcium (Crestor) and atorvastatin calcium (Lipitor) or fibrates, corresponding to gemfibrozil (Lopid) and fenofibrate (TriCor, Fenoglide).
You physician might also counsel a complement corresponding to niacin (nicotinic acid) or fish oil (omega-3 fatty acids).
Because low triglycerides are usually not trigger for concern, there’s not a present vary for them. If you’ve gotten a triglyceride degree decrease than regular (underneath 150 mg/dl), it’s most certainly a mirrored image of life-style selections corresponding to:
- a low-fat food regimen
- a nutritious diet
- a food regimen that features fasting
A low triglyceride degree is also a sign of an underlying situation, corresponding to malnutrition or malabsorption, however these circumstances would usually be identified by different signs.
Because a excessive triglyceride degree normally doesn’t trigger any signs, it’s usually noticed when your physician orders a blood take a look at that features a lipid panel.
If excessive threat components corresponding to medical circumstances or life-style selections usually are not current, your physician will order a lipid panel each few years to verify ldl cholesterol and triglyceride ranges.
If your lipid panel outcomes present triglyceride ranges above regular, your physician will most certainly counsel life-style adjustments centered on food regimen and train. If food regimen and train would not have the specified impact, your physician might suggest treatment, corresponding to statins or fibrates.
If your blood take a look at lipid panel signifies that you’ve a excessive triglyceride degree, your physician will in all probability suggest life-style adjustments, corresponding to exercising and following a food regimen low in easy carbohydrates, trans fat, and meals with hydrogenated oils or fat.
Typically, these life-style adjustments will enhance your general well being and decrease your triglyceride ranges.
