Should you worry about high triglycerides?

These blood fats can be one of the signs of metabolic syndrome, which increases the risk for having a heart attack or stroke. Until recently, triglycerides tended to get less attention when looking at cardiovascular risk compared to LDL and HDL cholesterol levels. There's no question that extremely high levels (1,000 mg/dL or more) spell trouble and can lead to acute pancreatitis. But what about treating lower levels of triglycerides? Recent evidence suggests you should work to reduce triglyceride levels if they are higher than normal, especially if you have heart disease or have other risk factors such as diabetes, high blood pressure or smoking.

 A Closer Look at Triglycerides, Cardiovascular Risk, and Statin Use

The incidence of cardiovascular (CV) disease continues to be high despite widespread statin use. The residual CV risk in statin-treated patients accounts for a large proportion of the healthcare burden today. “Elevated triglyceride levels have long been suspected of being an independent risk factor for atherosclerotic CV disease (ASCVD)...

 Remnant and VLDL Cholesterol Seen as Better Predictor of ASCVD Risk

Triglyceride and remnant cholesterol levels, but not LDL nor HDL cholesterol levels, were associated with major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE), according to an observational analysis of the PREDIMED primary prevention diet trial.

 What Is the Difference Between a Fatty Acid and a Triglyceride?

Fatty acids make up the bulk of a triglyceride molecule, and, although fatty acids and triglycerides are closely related, they differ in structure, function and the manner in which your body processes them. The types of fatty acids you consume from the triglycerides in your diet play a role in your health as well. The nature of their chemical structure impacts your risk of developing heart disease by affecting the amount of cholesterol circulating in your bloodstream.

How to Optimize Your Triglycerides Levels

The best way to lay a good foundation for managing blood lipids, as well as other underlying risk factors that contribute to high triglycerides and heart health, is a plant-based lifestyle. This includes eating whole foods that are high in fiber and phytonutrients, rich in omega-3 fatty acids, and have a low-glycemic impact.

Keeping tabs on triglycerides

People monitor their cholesterol levels, but they should also watch their triglycerides.

What is the difference between LDL and VLDL?

LDL and VLDL are both "lipoprotein packages" in your blood. Both are considered "bad" types of cholesterol. They differ in what each package carries. LDL cholesterol carries mostly cholesterol, some protein, and minimal triglycerides throughout your circulation. LDL should be less than 130 mg/dl, and ideally less than 100 mg/dl. VLDL cholesterol contains minimal protein and mainly transports triglycerides. VLDL should be less than 40 mg/dL.

A promising new treatment for high triglycerides

When you think about fat circulating in the bloodstream, you might immediately think of cholesterol. But there’s another type of fat you shouldn’t ignore: triglycerides. As with cholesterol, high triglycerides can also increase the risk of having a heart attack. Existing drugs for lowering triglycerides aren’t that good at reducing heart attack risk.

Children on Track for a Heart Attack

A new study suggests there is a simple way to assess a child's arterial health with a calculation based on an often-overlooked component of cholesterol: triglycerides. Triglycerides amount to an indicator of both fat and sugar in the blood stream. They are a type of blood fat and are made up of a glycerol backbone with three fatty acids attached.

How the body makes triglycerides

Researchers discovered the 3D structure and mode of action of DGAT1, the enzyme that synthesizes triglycerides.

Know your triglycerides: Here's why

When triglycerides are high, combining the levels of all the non-HDL cholesterol provides a more complete picture of cardiovascular risk. The math is simple: take the total cholesterol from your lipid results and subtract the HDL. The result represents all the stuff that can potentially contribute to clogging.

Triglycerides: Why do they matter?

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.

VLDL – The Role of Triglyceride-Rich Lipoproteins and Remnant Cholesterol

Lipoproteins are important biochemical substances whose main purpose is to carry lipids from one tissue to another. VLDL is produced by liver cells and is an important carrier of triglycerides (TGs) and to a lesser extent cholesterol. Once in the circulation, VLDL is broken down in capillary beds by an enzyme called lipoprotein lipase, releasing lipids, mainly TGs, for energy utilization by cells or storage in adipose tissue.

Why and How To Lower Triglycerides in People at Risk of Heart Disease

Since cardiovascular disease is to a certain extent preventable, we should be eager to learn how we can modify our risk and at least do our best to delay the onset of these disorders. One way to assess risk is to have our blood lipids measured. Knowing our cholesterol level is considered valuable and lowering it is usually recommended. But how about other types of fats in our blood stream? What about triglycerides, do they matter? Interestingly, when it comes to assessing the risk of cardiovascular disease, triglycerides have always played second fiddle to cholesterol.

Your Ultimate Cheat Sheet to Understanding Triglycerides

Triglycerides are in cahoots with HDL cholesterol (a.k.a. the “good cholesterol”). Why? Because having higher amounts of HDL can help carry these fatty deposits of triglycerides away from blood vessels and be protective.