We certainly hear a lot about cholesterol and how it increases a persons chances of heart disease and stroke but what about very high triglycerides. If we dont hear much about them surely very high triglyceride levels arent really worth paying much attention to, right? Actually that couldnt be farther from the truth and many experts believe that very high triglyceride levels are just as dangerous to heart and artery health as runaway cholesterol levels.
According to the American Medical Association very high triglyceride levels pose a serious health problem leading to increased risk of high blood pressure, elevated cholesterol levels, atherosclerosis (arterial blockage by fat deposits), diabetes mellitus, and an increased risk of cancer. The AMA also encourages people to be tested for very high triglycerides once a year.
Testing blood triglyceride levels
Tests for high triglycerides often check for these dangerous blood fats by elevating blood cholesterol levels. Blood samples are taken after a lengthy fast (9 to 12 hours). Water is the exception and can be consumed during this period. The reason this is done is prevent triglyceride levels from inexplicably spiking after a meal, thus producing a false positive for high triglyceride levels.
Triglyceride levels may also be affected by recent exercise, diet, hormones, alcohol, and a long list of both over the counter and prescription medications. So there is a good chance your doctor will provide you with a long list of things not to do before the test is conducted.
This leads us to next point as to what actually dictates a very high triglyceride level, or for that matter a reading that is out of a healthy range. The National Institutes of Health provides us with what most medical professionals would consider to be the accepted standard. According to the NIH a reading of 250 milligrams per deciliter of blood is considered normal, when blood cholesterol is also normal. A reading of 250 to 500 mg/dl is borderline high. A level of 500 mg/dl is considered to be a very high triglyceride reading and quite often linked to other factors for heart disease. A reading this high can also put a person at risk for pancreatic disease.
If you initially test very high your doctor will likely want to rerun the test just to make sure that a person does indeed have very high triglycerides. The reason for this is to confirm the initial reading before any prescription medication is prescription. If you doctor believe prescription medication is needed to control triglyceride levels he will likely choose from one of three categories; fibrates, prescription strength niacin, or statins. All of these drugs do have a number of label warnings so be sure and ask your doctor about side effects before embarking on a long term prescription regime.
What else? If you have been diagnosed with very high triglyceride levels and are looking for a side effects free way to treat this condition there are a number of cholesterol and triglyceride reduction supplements currently available without a prescription. When combined with moderate exercise (5 or more day a week), and a low saturated fat, low calorie diet, these all natural supplements have been shown to be quite effective for high triglyceride levels as well as reducing LDL (bad) cholesterol levels.
By:
R.D. Hawkins
R.D. Hawkins is an enthusiastic advocate for the use of natural health products and natural living with over 10 years
experience in the field.
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