When you may have a cholesterol test (also called a lipid panel or lipid profile), crucial value is your low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol, sometimes called “bad” cholesterol. High LDL levels closely track the arterial clogging process at the foundation of most heart disease. But a lipid panel also shows your blood levels of triglycerides, that are essentially the most common type of fat in food and in your bloodstream. Because levels rise after you eat, triglycerides must be measured after a minimum of eight hours of fasting to get an accurate reading for treatment decisions. When and why must you concentrate to your triglyceride value?
For healthy adults, a standard level is lower than 150 milligrams per deciliter (mg/dL), but 25% to 30% of Americans have values above this level. Values of 151 to 200 mg/dL are high. They are greater than 201 to 499, and so they are greater than 500 and more.
When does the chance start to extend?
How to Lower Triglycerides
The excellent news is that lifestyle changes can have a huge impact on triglyceride levels.
“If people with high triglycerides eat a healthy diet, exercise regularly, and lose weight, they can lower their levels by more than 50 percent,” says Dr. Marston. These suggestions may help:
Choose carbohydrates properly. Cut down on easily digestible carbohydrates like white bread, white rice, chips, sugar-laden breakfast cereals, and anything — including drinks — with a number of sugar.
See fat. Cut back on saturated fat from meat and butter, which may raise triglycerides. Try to eat more unsaturated fats from plants, oils and fish, which lower triglycerides.
Avoid excessive alcohol. Moderate drinking (one drink per day for girls, two for men) could also be appropriate. But less is best in case your triglycerides are high.
Proceed. Regular exercise lowers triglycerides.
Aim for a healthy weight. If you qualify as obese or chubby, reaching a healthy body weight can bring your triglycerides back into the conventional range. Losing just 5% to 10% of your weight might help.
Medication for prime triglycerides
Triglyceride levels of 150 to 499 ought to be checked and treated for any underlying health problems, including diabetes, obesity, low thyroid levels (hypothyroidism), and liver or kidney disease. But when triglycerides remain high after addressing these issues and making lifestyle changes, medication could also be a superb idea, especially for people who find themselves in danger for heart disease.
Many people on this category are already taking a cholesterol-lowering statin, which lowers triglycerides by about 30 percent. Drugs often called fibrates, including fenofibrate (Antara, Tricor, others) and gemfibrozil (Lopid) lower triglyceride levels by about 50%, but when added to statins, they reduce the chance of heart attack or stroke. They don't. Icosapent ethyl (Vascepa), a highly purified type of a selected fat in fish oil, lowers triglycerides by about 30%. And when individuals with diabetes or heart disease take icosapone ethyl with a statin, it reduces their risk of heart attack, stroke, and death from a heart attack by about 25 percent.
On the horizon
Very high triglyceride levels (500 mg/dL and above) sometimes have a genetic component. An extreme example is familial hyperchylomicronemia syndrome (FCS), which affects just one to 2 in 1,000,000. These people – whose blood appears milky resulting from excess fat – suffer from pancreatitis (inflammation of the pancreas). Serious cases may be fatal. Two investigational drugs, plozasiran and olezarsen, are RNA-targeted therapies that block a protein that controls triglyceride metabolism. Both drugs dramatically lower triglyceride levels and eliminate the chance of pancreatitis, Dr. Marston says. These drugs can also be helpful in treating individuals with moderately elevated triglyceride levels, he added.
Photo: © jarun011/Getty Images