Overview
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 in your blood can increase your risk of heart disease. They are the most common type of fat in your body. They come from foods, especially butter, oils, and other fats you eat. Triglycerides also come from extra calories. These are the calories that you eat, but your body does not need right away. Your body changes these extra calories into triglycerides, and stores them in fat cells. When your body needs energy, it releases the triglycerides. Your VLDL cholesterol particles carry the triglycerides to your tissues.But the same lifestyle choices that promote overall health can help lower your triglycerides, too.Triglycerides are a type of fat (lipid) 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.
High Triglycerides
Do you have high triglyceride levels? If you do, you're hardly alone. Overall, more than a third of adults in the U.S. have high triglyceride levels, a type of fat in the blood.Very high levels of triglycerides are associated with liver and pancreas problems.But studies show conflicting results on the role of high triglycerides and the risk of heart disease. Not all experts agree that triglycerides play a significant role in heart problems.High triglycerides tend to show up along with other problems, like high blood pressure, diabetes, obesity, high levels of "bad" LDL cholesterol, and low levels of "good" HDL cholesterol. So it’s hard to know for sure which problems are caused by high triglycerides alone.For instance, some people have a genetic condition that seems to cause high triglyceride levels. But they don’t have an increased risk of heart disease. Still, there is some evidence that high triglycerides, on their own, increase the risk of disease. Other studies show that high triglycerides may only play a minor role when other heart disease risks are taken into account.With ongoing studies, scientists hope to find out whether drugs that lower triglycerides also reduce the risks of heart disease.
How are high triglycerides diagnosed? There is a blood test that measures your triglycerides, along with your cholesterol. Triglyceride levels are measured in milligrams per deciliter (mg/dL).Triglycerides - Serum triglyceride analysis has proven useful in the diagnosis and treatment of patients with diabetes mellitus, nephrosis, liver obstruction, other diseases involving lipid metabolism, and various endocrine disorders. In conjunction with high density lipoprotein and total serum cholesterol, a triglyceride determination provides valuable information for the assessment of coronary heart disease risk.
How to Lower Triglycerides
There are several ways to reduce the Triglycerides. Few of them are :
Lose some Weight Whenever you eat more calories than you need, your body turns those calories into triglycerides and stores them in fat cells.That's why losing weight is an effective way to lower your blood triglyceride levels.
Limit Sugar Intake Added sugar is a big part of many people's diets.Extra sugar in your diet is turned into triglycerides, which can lead to an increase in blood triglyceride levels, along with other heart disease risk factors.
Follow a Low-Carb Diet Much like added sugar, extra carbs in your diet are converted into triglycerides and stored in fat cells.Not surprisingly, low-carb diets have been linked to lower blood triglyceride levels.
Eat More Fiber Fiber is found in fruits, vegetables and whole grains.Other good sources of fiber include nuts, cereals and legumes.Including more fiber in your diet can decrease the absorption of fat and sugar in your small intestine, helping to lower the amount of triglycerides in your blood.Looking for a corps lab?. Use Tuhealthy App for mump titer test.
