Triglycerides: how much is too much?

Each time you eat a meal rich in carbohydrates or fats your body breaks it down into glucose and fatty acids. What it cannot use immediately, it stores.

One way it does this is by making triglycerides.

A triglyceride is a molecule of glycerol bound to three fatty acids. In your liver and fat cells, excess calories are converted into these molecules.

They are then carried in your blood by lipoproteins. Lipoproteins are transport carriers that take the fat to all parts of your body to be stored.

But there is a problem.

Chronically high triglyceride levels are linked to heart disease, pancreatitis, and metabolic disorders.

High triglycerides often go hand in hand with low HDL cholesterol, high LDL particles, and insulin resistance.

How do you know your levels?

A simple blood test called a lipid profile measures it. The test is usually done after fasting as eating can temporarily raise triglycerides.

Healthy fasting levels are typically under 150 mg/dL. My triglycerides are 70.

If your numbers are high, what can you do?

Obviously, stop adding more. Excess calories, especially from sugar, alcohol, and refined carbohydrates. These spike insulin, which drives the liver to make more triglycerides.

Exercise helps. Muscles use triglyceride-rich particles for fuel. The more active you are, the more these particles are cleared from your bloodstream.

Even walking after meals makes a difference.

Eating more omega-3 fatty acids from fatty fish, flax, or chia seeds can also help. Omega-3s reduce the production of triglycerides in the liver.

Fiber from vegetables and whole foods slows absorption of sugar and fats.

Your body is always in a state of balance. Too much stored energy signals that something is wrong.

By correcting that mismatch, you allow your body to return to equilibrium.

Your triglycerides will follow.

If your triglycerides are high, it is best not to ignore the number. It will not go away on its own.

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