Q. My doctor told me my cholesterol and triglycerides
are elevated. I have a vague idea what cholesterol is but I’m clueless about tyglycerides. What are they?
A. Triglycerides are a fat
in your blood. They are important in maintaining good health. However, if your
triglycerides get out of control, you can put your heart at risk. People with
high triglycerides usually have lower HDL (good) cholesterol and a higher risk
of heart attack and stroke.
Calories you take in but don’t
burn immediately are converted to triglycerides to supply you with energy
later. Your triglycerides level can be too high if you continue to consume more
calories than you need.
Of course, this causes
obesity, too.
Other causes of elevated
triglycerides — called hypertriglyceridemia —
Include diabetes, an underactive thyroid, kidney disease and drugs such as
beta-blockers, some diuretics, estrogen, tamoxifen,
steroids and birth control pills.
The common guidelines for
triglyceride levels are the following: normal, less than 150 mg/dL; borderline-high, 150 to 199 mg/dL;
high, 200 to 499 mg/dL, and very high, 500 mg/dL or more — “mg/dL” stands
for milligram per deciliter.
The primary remedy for too
many triglycerides is changing your habits. Here are some pointers on how to
get your triglycerides down:
• Get off the recliner and
exercise.
• Cut
your caloric intake across the board. This means you have to reduce your
consumption of not just fat, but carbohydrates and proteins.
• Substituting carbohydrates
for fats can raise triglyceride levels.
• People with high
triglycerides may have to limit their intake of carbohydrates to no more than
45 to 50 percent of total calories.
• Avoid saturated fat, trans
fat and cholesterol. This is a complex subject. A good starting point is to
stay away from foods that come from animals such as meat, dairy and eggs. But
there are plant-based foods that are bad for you, too. These include oils from
coconuts, cottonseeds and palm kernels.
• Eat oily fish such as
mackerel, lake trout, herring, sardines, albacore tuna and salmon, which are
high in omega-3 fatty acids.
• Research has shown that
omega-3 fatty acids decrease triglyceride levels
• A
small about of alcohol can generate a big increase in triglyceride levels. Cut
down as much as you can.
• Quit
smoking. If you’re a regular
reader of this column, you must know by now that smoking doesn’t just cause
respiratory diseases such as lung cancer and emphysema. It kills you in so many
ways.
If changing your habits is
insufficient to bring your level of triglycerides down, there are medications
that can be prescribed. Fenofibrate, gemfibrozil and nicotinic acids often work to reduce
triglycerides.
Hypertriglyceridemia can run in families. While high triglycerides don’t
usually present noticeable symptoms, people with a family history of very high
triglycerides may have visible fatty deposits under the skin.
Elevated triglycerides are
often part of a group of conditions called metabolic syndrome. This syndrome is
the combination of high blood pressure, elevated blood sugar, excess weight,
low HDL cholesterol, and high triglycerides. This syndrome increases your risk
for heart disease, diabetes and stroke.
In the next installment of
The Healthy Geezer, we’ll focus upon cholesterol.
If you have a question,
please write to fred@healthygeezer.com
All Rights Reserved © 2009
by Fred Cicetti