What is the best way to lower triglycerides naturally? Get answers to your questions about managing high triglycerides through diet. Learn effective strategies to reduce triglyceride levels and improve heart health.

Understanding Triglycerides and Their Impact on Health

Triglycerides are a type of fat found in the blood that serves as an important source of energy for the body. However, high levels of triglycerides can lead to serious health problems, including an increased risk of heart disease, stroke, and metabolic syndrome. Metabolic syndrome is a cluster of conditions that includes high blood pressure, high blood sugar, low HDL (“good”) cholesterol, and excess belly fat.

The main culprits for high triglycerides are an unhealthy diet, excess calorie intake, and a sedentary lifestyle. Foods high in added sugars, refined carbohydrates, and saturated fats are particularly problematic, as they can cause triglyceride levels to spike.

Dietary Strategies to Lower Triglycerides Naturally

Fortunately, there are many ways to lower triglycerides through dietary changes. The key is to focus on reducing your intake of added sugars, refined carbohydrates, and unhealthy fats, while increasing your consumption of whole, nutrient-dense foods.

Reduce Added Sugars and Refined Carbs

One of the most important steps in lowering triglycerides is to cut back on added sugars and refined carbohydrates. These types of carbs, especially fructose, can significantly raise triglyceride levels. Avoid foods like soda, baked goods, candy, and breakfast cereals that are high in added sugars. Instead, opt for whole grains, fruits, vegetables, and legumes, which are high in fiber and can help lower triglycerides.

Choose Healthy Fats

While you should limit your intake of saturated and trans fats, which can raise triglyceride levels, it’s important to include healthy fats in your diet. Foods rich in monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats, such as avocados, nuts, seeds, and olive oil, can help lower triglycerides and improve overall heart health.

Increase Omega-3 Intake

Omega-3 fatty acids, found in fatty fish like salmon, mackerel, and sardines, can significantly reduce triglyceride levels. Aim to eat fish high in omega-3s at least twice a week, or consider taking a fish oil supplement if you don’t consume enough seafood.

Lifestyle Factors that Impact Triglycerides

In addition to diet, there are several other lifestyle factors that can influence triglyceride levels. Understanding and addressing these factors can help you lower your triglycerides more effectively.

Maintain a Healthy Weight

Excess weight, particularly around the waistline, is a significant contributor to high triglycerides. Losing even a few pounds can have a noticeable impact on your triglyceride levels. Aim for regular exercise, such as 30 minutes of moderate activity five days a week, to help shed extra pounds and improve your overall health.

Limit Alcohol Consumption

Excessive alcohol consumption can lead to a significant increase in triglyceride levels. For women, it’s recommended to limit alcohol intake to no more than one drink per day, and for men, no more than two drinks per day. If you struggle with high triglycerides, it may be best to avoid alcohol altogether.

Medical Interventions for Stubborn High Triglycerides

If lifestyle changes alone aren’t enough to lower your triglycerides, your doctor may recommend medication. Prescription drugs like fibrates, niacin, and statins can be effective in reducing triglyceride levels, especially in cases of very high triglycerides (500 mg/dL or above).

It’s important to work closely with your healthcare provider to determine the best course of action for managing your triglycerides. They can help you understand your test results, assess your overall risk, and develop a personalized treatment plan that combines lifestyle modifications and, if necessary, medication.

Monitoring Triglyceride Levels

Regular blood tests can help you track your triglyceride levels and monitor the effectiveness of your efforts to lower them. The following ranges provide a general guideline:

• Normal: Less than 150 mg/dL
• Borderline high: 150-199 mg/dL
• High: 200-499 mg/dL
• Very high: 500 mg/dL and above

If your triglycerides are consistently high, it’s important to work with your healthcare provider to address the underlying causes and develop an effective plan to lower them. Doing so can significantly reduce your risk of heart disease, stroke, and other related health problems.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can exercise help lower triglycerides?

Yes, regular exercise can be an effective way to lower triglyceride levels. Aim for at least 30 minutes of moderate-intensity exercise, such as brisk walking, swimming, or dancing, five days a week. Exercise helps burn excess triglycerides and can lead to a 20-30% reduction in triglyceride levels.

What are the best foods to eat to lower triglycerides?

Some of the best foods for lowering triglycerides include fatty fish, nuts, seeds, avocados, and whole grains. These foods are rich in healthy fats, fiber, and other nutrients that can help reduce triglyceride levels. Avoid added sugars, refined carbs, and unhealthy saturated and trans fats.

Can omega-3 supplements help lower triglycerides?

Yes, omega-3 supplements, particularly those containing EPA and DHA, can be effective in lowering triglyceride levels. However, it’s important to consult with your healthcare provider before starting any new supplements, as high doses of omega-3s can potentially cause bleeding in some individuals.

How quickly can lifestyle changes lower triglycerides?

The time it takes to see a noticeable reduction in triglyceride levels can vary, but many people find that significant changes can occur within 4-8 weeks of implementing a healthier diet and exercise routine. However, for some individuals, it may take several months to see the full impact of lifestyle changes on their triglyceride levels.

How to Lower Triglycerides Naturally

Medically Reviewed by James Beckerman, MD, FACC on July 29, 2021

Maybe you’ve put on a few extra pounds. Now your yearly blood work comes back showing high triglycerides. These fats are an important source of energy in your body, but at high levels they can hurt your heart. Like cholesterol, triglyceride troubles can lead to clogged arteries and possibly to a heart attack or stroke. Luckily, there are many ways to lower your triglycerides.

High triglycerides can be part of an unhealthy condition called metabolic syndrome. Other parts of this illness can include:

• Low HDL “good” cholesterol
• High blood pressure
• Belly fat
• High blood sugar

Metabolic syndrome greatly increases your chances of developing heart disease, stroke, and diabetes.

That creamy latte, grilled cheese sandwich, or scoop of ice cream before bed can all lead to high triglycerides. If you often eat more calories than you burn – like many of us do – your triglycerides may start to inch up. The worst offenders are sugary foods and foods high in saturated fat, like cheese, whole milk, and red meat.

If you have high triglycerides, get your sweet tooth in check. Simple sugars, especially fructose (a sugar often found in fruit), raise triglycerides. Watch out for foods made with added sugar, including soda, baked goodies, candy, most breakfast cereals, flavored yogurt, and ice cream.

Learn to spot added sugars on food labels. Words to look for include brown sugar, corn syrup, words ending in “ose” (dextrose, fructose, glucose, lactose, maltose, sucrose), fruit juice concentrates, cane syrup, cane sugar, honey, malt sugar, molasses, and raw sugar.

Swap out foods made with refined white flour, and bring on the whole grains. You’ll eat more fiber, which helps lower your triglycerides. For breakfast, have a bowl of steel-cut oats with berries instead of a bagel or sweet cereal. At lunchtime, try a salad loaded with veggies and garbanzo beans. Choose brown rice or quinoa at dinner instead of potatoes or pasta.

A little fat is good for you, when it’s the healthy kind. Choose foods that naturally contain mono- and polyunsaturated fats: avocados, walnuts, chicken without the skin, canola oil, and olive oil. Avoid trans fats, which are found in many processed foods, French fries, crackers, cakes, chips, and stick margarine. Don’t eat much saturated fat, found in red meat, ice cream, cheese, and buttery baked goods.

The same omega-3 fats that are good for your heart can help lower your triglycerides, too. Next time you eat out, get the fish instead of a burger or steak. Eat fish at least twice a week. Salmon, mackerel, herring, lake trout, albacore tuna, and sardines are all high in omega-3s.

Other good sources of omega-3s:

• Walnuts
• Flaxseeds
• Spinach
• Kale
• Brussels sprouts
• Salad greens
• Beans

Ask your doctor. Capsules can give you a concentrated amount of omega-3s, but not everyone needs them. You may be able to lower triglycerides by making healthier choices in your life. And high doses of omega-3s can cause bleeding in some people. If your doctor says it’s OK, look for capsules with EPA and DHA, two powerful types of omega-3.

Do you unwind with wine, beer, or a cocktail? Switch to sparkling water with a squeeze of lime juice. Or try a tangy herbal iced-tea blend that tastes great without added sugar. Excess drinking is one cause of high triglycerides. That means more than one drink a day for women and two drinks a day for men. For some people, even small amounts of alcohol can raise triglycerides.

One of the easiest things you can do to lower your triglycerides is to cut out sweetened drinks. Sodas and other sugary drinks are packed with fructose, a known offender when it comes to boosting triglycerides. Drink no more than 36 ounces of sweet sippers per week — that means three 12-ounce cans of soda.

Extra weight, particularly around your waist, raises triglycerides. One of the biggest things you can do to bring your levels down is to take it off. It doesn’t have to be dramatic, either. 

If you’re carrying around a few extra pounds, starting regular workouts can get you in shape and lower your triglycerides at the same time. Aim for 30 minutes of exercise five days a week, and be sure to break a sweat and get your heart pumping. You can cut your triglycerides by 20% to 30%. If you’re new to exercise, try a dance class, go for a swim, or take a brisk walk each day.

A simple blood test can spot high triglycerides. Your doctor may also look for related health problems. These include kidney disease, a slow thyroid gland, diabetes, and obesity.  Here’s how triglyceride test numbers stack up:

• Normal – Less than 150 mg/dL
• Borderline – 150-199 mg/dL
• High – 200-499 mg/dL
• Very high – 500mg/dL and up [1]

If lifestyle changes haven’t helped enough, your doctor may suggest adding a prescription medicine. Fibrates, niacin, statins, and high-dose fish oil are a few of the options. Your doctor will look at all your blood fats — triglycerides and all types of cholesterol — to decide the best way to protect your heart.

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REFERENCES:

American Academy of Nurse Practitioners: “A Roadmap for Managing Your Triglycerides and Protecting Your Heart.”
American Family Physician: “Omega-3 Fatty Acids.”
American Heart Association: “Fish 101,” “Fish and Omega-3 Fatty Acids,” “Triglycerides,” “Triglycerides: Frequently Asked Questions. “
CDC: “Saturated Fat.”
Harvard School of Public Health: “Ask the Expert: Omega-3 Fatty Acids.”
Medline Plus: “Triglycerides.”
National Heart Lung and Blood Institute: “What Is Metabolic Syndrome?”
National Institute of General Medical Sciences: “What Do Fats Do in the Body?”
TheHeart.org: “Diet and Exercise Key for Treating High Triglycerides: New AHA Statement.”

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Symptoms, Causes, Tests, & Normal Range

Written by R. Morgan Griffin

Medically Reviewed by Poonam Sachdev on October 18, 2021

• Know Your Triglyceride Numbers
• Why Are High Triglycerides Bad?
• Controlling High Triglycerides: Lifestyle Changes
• Controlling High Triglycerides: Medical Treatment
• High Triglycerides: Getting Help
• How Often Should My Triglycerides Be Tested?
• More

You’ve probably heard of cholesterol. You might even know if your levels are too high. But what do you know about your triglycerides? Overall, more than a third of adults in the U.S. have high triglyceride levels, a type of fat in the blood.

Although it’s a common problem, many of us don’t know the first thing about high triglycerides. Studies have consistently linked high triglycerides levels with heart disease, heart attacks, and stroke, especially in people with low levels of “good” HDL cholesterol and in those with type 2 diabetes. So if you have diabetes, high blood pressure, or other things that make you more likely to get heart disease, your doctor will likely want to keep a check on your triglyceride levels.

The good news is that there’s a lot you can do on your own to lower triglycerides and improve health.

First, find out if your triglycerides are high. Then, find out what to do about it.

A blood test called a lipid panel checks both your triglyceride and cholesterol levels. Usually, your doctor will ask that you fast, or not eat or drink anything other than water, for 9-12 hours before the test. You’ll get blood taken from a vein in your arm. Some labs offer non-fasting lipid panels, or they may prick your finger for blood.

Here are the levels, based on a fasting blood test.

• Normal: Less than 150 mg/dL
• Borderline: 150 to 199 mg/dL
• High: 200 to 499 mg/dL
• Very High: 500 mg/dL or above

Anyone over age 20 needs to get regular tests to track their cholesterol and triglyceride levels, according to the American Heart Association.

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.

Overall, it’s important to remember that improving diet and lifestyle will lower triglycerides and lower the overall risk of heart and blood vessel problems.

Although finding out that you have high triglycerides might be upsetting, there’s a lot you can do on your own to lower them. Making changes to your lifestyle can have a dramatic benefit. Here are some suggestions:

• Get more physical activity.Exercise can have a big impact on triglyceride levels. Experts recommend that everybody get at least 30 minutes of exercise at least five times a week. If you’re out of shape, start slowly. Begin with a quick walk three times a week and then build up from there.
• Lose some weight. If you’re overweight or obese, shed a few pounds and try to maintain an ideal body weight. Exercise will help, but you also need to focus on diet. The key is to eat fewer calories — whether they come from fats, carbs, or protein. Focus on a diet that’s high in fruits, vegetables, lean proteins, and low-fat dairy products. Cutting down on sugary foods — like sodas — could really help, too.
• Choose better fats. Pay more attention to the fats you eat. Eat fewer foods with unhealthy fats (found in meat, butter, and cheese) and trans fats (in processed foods and margarines), as well as cholesterol. Boost your intake of healthy monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats, which are found in olive oil, nuts, and some fish. Studies have found that the omega-3s in fatty fish — like tuna, salmon, mackerel, and sardines — are particularly good at lowering triglyceride levels. Because even healthy fats are high in calories, you still need to eat these foods in moderation.
• Cut down on alcohol. Even small amounts of alcohol seem to cause big spikes in triglyceride levels. Limit alcohol intake to one drink a day.

People with heart disease and high triglycerides may need medication to bring down their levels.

• Fibrates can lower triglycerides. They modestly improve cholesterol levels, too.
• Fish oil with omega-3 fatty acids can help keep triglycerides under control. Ask your doctor whether you should use prescription fish oil. Omega-3 acids from plant sources like flaxseed may help.
• Niacin (nicotinic acid) can lower triglycerides by up to 50%. It’s available as a non-prescription supplement and as a prescription drug.

Remember that to stay healthy and keep your triglycerides down, you still have to focus on improving your lifestyle.

When you talk to your doctor, discuss all of the medicines, supplements, and vitamins you take. Some common drugs — like beta-blockers, birth control pills, and diuretics — can cause high triglycerides as a side effect. It’s possible that one of them could be causing your problem.

When it comes to cholesterol and triglycerides, perhaps the most important thing is to get regular screenings.

See your doctor and get checked out. If your triglycerides are high, you and your doctor can decide on a treatment plan — and you can make a few simple but effective changes to your lifestyle.

If you’re a healthy adult, you should get a lipid profile every 4-6 years. Children should have it done at least once between the ages of 9 and 11, and one more time between 17 and 21. If you’re making changes to your diet or taking medication for high cholesterol or triglycerides, experts advise you to get a lipid profile afterward.

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Symptoms and Causes of High Triglyceride Levels: How to Deal with It

Triglycerides are the most common fats in food and in the human body, they are molecules composed of glycerol and fatty acids that can be classified as saturated, monounsaturated and unsaturated. The fatty acid composition of the diet is very important for the prevention of cardiovascular diseases, both qualitatively and quantitatively. Therefore, it is useful to know what fats are and how much they are in food

When total blood fat levels are too high, there is a risk of developing cardiovascular disease. The symptoms associated with high triglycerides in the blood are unfortunately not obvious, and you may not even know about the presence of this problem until you pass an analysis that reveals their high concentration.

Causes of high triglycerides

• Comorbidities such as thyroid disease, metabolic syndrome, diabetes mellitus, liver or kidney disease.
• Severely overweight or obese.
• Unhealthy lifestyle characterized by inactivity, consumption of foods rich in fats and sugar, alcohol consumption and smoking.
• Immoderate diet.
• Genetics: this applies to people with hereditary hypertriglyceridemia. But even with such a hereditary pathology, external factors come into play, because the severity of the situation may depend on nutrition.

The causes that lead to high triglycerides can be addressed.

The best and most effective approach is a healthy lifestyle.

Even if such an abnormality is associated with the presence of real pathologies, it is always necessary to monitor your eating habits and physical activity, regardless of whether you are prescribed drugs to control lipid profile indicators (cholesterol and triglyceride levels).

High triglycerides: when to worry?

Since high triglyceride levels do not cause specific symptoms, it is recommended to keep them under control before problems associated with their high concentration appear. The risk is that a person faces serious health problems, such as coronary heart disease, stroke, acute forms of pancreatitis.

The first wake-up call is the achievement and exceeding of the threshold level of triglycerides in the blood: 150 mg / dl (milligram / deciliter).

Exceeding the 150 mg/dL blood triglyceride threshold poses a risk to heart health. This indicator becomes even more alarming in the presence of other risk factors for cardiovascular disease, in particular, too high concentrations of “bad” cholesterol (LDL) and too low proportion of “good” cholesterol (HDL).

High triglycerides: when to worry?

Any person with high triglyceride levels should first analyze their lifestyle. One of the main goals is to maintain normal body weight or return body weight to normal.

In addition, it is very important to follow the rules in nutrition:

Reduce your intake of saturated fats and eliminate trans fatty acids by minimizing or eliminating the consumption of fatty meats, sausages, high-fat cheeses and processed foods.

Watch out for the quality and quantity of carbohydrates that can cause an increase in triglycerides by favoring slow digesting carbohydrates such as whole grain starches.

Include omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids in your diet by eating fish products 2-3 times a week.

Limit sugar and alcohol intake.

Eat nuts and dried fruits, which are sources of omega-3 precursors.

Lowering triglycerides: more than just diet

This goal should not only be about diet: regular physical activity and not smoking are also important to reduce high triglycerides.

The ability of moderate, sustained exercise to alter various risk parameters over time, such as blood triglycerides, blood sugar, and blood pressure, is increasingly supported by research.

You can also follow a low fat diet. This type of therapeutic diet is characterized by the restriction of fat intake and should be administered and supervised by a nutritionist; it aims to modulate the lipid profile (reducing the level of cholesterol and triglycerides in the blood).

In some cases, fibrates, omega-3s, nicotinic acid, berberine or fermented red rice (e.g. Lactoflorene Cholesterol ) may be indicated – substances that help lower blood cholesterol and triglycerides, up to statins – the most commonly used drugs for the treatment of hyperlipidemia.

After testing and diagnosing, the doctor will determine whether prescription drugs are needed or supplements can be used to resolve the problem. In any case, you must follow the recommendations of your doctor.

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Triglycerides

Yulia Mikhailovna Nikitina, cardiologist, MEDSI-Premium functional diagnostics doctor, talks about what triglycerides are, what they are used for and who is assigned to study the level of triglycerides in the blood, what to do in case of an increase in their level.

Triglycerides (synonyms: blood lipids, neutral fats, TG, TG, Trig, Triglycerides) are one of the main sources of energy in the body. They come with food, are formed in the intestine, liver and adipose tissue, transported by the blood and deposited in adipose tissue. Between meals, they enter the bloodstream and are burned, releasing energy for the body.

Triglycerides are insoluble in water, so they circulate in the blood as macromolecular complexes with proteins called lipoproteins. Most TG in the body is carried by very low density lipoproteins (VLDL) and chylomicrons.

Blood TG levels fluctuate significantly throughout the day. After a meal, the content of TG in the blood serum increases after 15-30 minutes and returns to its original level only after 9-12 hours, so the determination of TG is usually recommended to be carried out strictly on an empty stomach, after a night fasting period of at least 12 hours.

However, the transient accumulation of residual TG-rich lipoproteins in the blood during the period after a meal also serves as a significant factor in atherosclerosis. Circulating in the bloodstream, TG can be absorbed by macrophages, which are localized in the forming atherosclerotic plaques, which is a key step in the development of atherosclerosis.

An increase in TG levels is associated with an increase in cardiac risk, it indicates the need for a comprehensive analysis of other risk factors.

Also, an increase in their level increases the risk of developing acute pancreatitis – inflammation of the pancreas (a level >10 mmol/l is considered critical).

What is research used for?

• Atherosclerosis and cardiovascular risk assessment
• Monitoring the effectiveness of a reduced animal fat diet
• Monitor blood lipid levels after prescribing triglyceride-lowering drugs

When is the test scheduled?

• Together with a total cholesterol test or as part of a lipid profile. Lipidogram is recommended for all adults over 20 years of age at least once every 5 years
• At routine check-ups, if the person is prescribed a low-fat diet and/or is taking triglyceride and cholesterol-lowering medications. In these cases, it is checked whether the target lipid level is reached and, accordingly, whether the risk of cardiovascular diseases is reduced
• It is especially important to check TG in diabetics and pre-diabetes, as fluctuations in sugar levels increase triglycerides
• If one or more risk factors for cardiovascular disease are present in the patient’s life: smoking, age (men over 45, women over 55), high blood pressure (130/80 mmHg and above), high cholesterol or cardiovascular disease in other family members (heart attack or stroke in the closest male relative under 55 or female under 65), coronary heart disease, myocardial infarction or stroke, diabetes mellitus, overweight, alcohol abuse, large amount of food containing animal fats, low physical activity
• If the child is overweight or in the family there were cases of high cholesterol, heart disease at a young age (it is recommended to take a lipid spectrum test for the first time at the age of 2 to 10 years)

Causes of elevated triglyceride levels (hypertriglyceridemia)

Often, an increase in TG levels is a consequence of dietary characteristics.

Secondary hypertriglyceridemia may occur in:

• obesity
• alcohol abuse
• type 2 diabetes mellitus and impaired glucose tolerance
• chronic kidney disease, nephrotic syndrome
• liver pathology, cirrhosis
• decreased thyroid function (hypothyroidism)
• pancreatitis
• gout
• smoking
• sedentary lifestyle
• pregnancy
• Reception of oral contraceptives, estrogens, furosemide, Veroshpyron, thiazide diuretics, cordarone, corticosteroids, retinoic acid derivatives, protein-gumper beta, bile acidic acids, antipsychotic and takholimus, lsparaginase, interfa. Rona Alfa-2b, Cyclophosphamide

In rare cases, an increase in TG levels may be the result of hereditary disorders of lipid metabolism (in such situations, the indicators significantly exceed the upper limit of the reference values): familial combined hyperlipidemia, familial dysbetalipoproteinemia, familial hypertriglyceridemia, familial lipoprotein lipase deficiency.