Dangers Of Low Triglycerides
Low triglyceride levels are generally not dangerous. In fact, research supports the idea that low triglyceride levels can offer certain health benefits.
In one 2014 study, researchers found that lower non-fasting triglyceride levels were associated with a reduction in all-cause mortality in almost 14,000 study participants.
Another smaller 2017 study found that low triglyceride levels were linked to improved brain function in older adults without dementia.
However, incredibly low triglyceride levels may be linked to other conditions, as mentioned above. Some of these conditions in and of themselves may be dangerous, so it becomes important to treat the underlying condition thats causing low triglycerides.
What Causes Levels To Fluctuate
Triglyceride levels fluctuate naturally in response to many factors, including calorie intake and time of day. Eating a meal can cause an increase in triglycerides, which the body may store to use later when it needs energy.
These fluctuations are typically short-lived, but they are part of the reason why doctors may ask a person to fast before getting a lipid profile blood test.
Some health conditions may increase the risk of higher triglyceride levels. According to the
- hormone medications
- immunosuppressant drugs
Anyone who is uncertain about the side effects of their specific medication should speak with their doctor.
A person can use a few treatments to help lower their triglyceride levels.
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Which Medicines Can Lower Triglycerides
For some people, good habits may not be enough. Medication might be needed. The decision for you and your doctor can be complicated because other health conditions are usually involved. Several types of medicine can improve levels. They include:
- High doses of omega-3s are needed to lower triglycerides and should be taken only under a doctors care. Epanova, Lovaza, and Vascepa are prescription forms of omega-3s.
Your doctor may also prescribe a class of drugs called âstatinsâ that lower cholesterol. Examples include: atorvastatin , rosuvastatin , and simvastatin .
You may feel side effects from these drugs. Be sure to talk it over with your doctor or pharmacist.
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How Do Triglyceride Levels Compare With Cholesterol Levels
If you have high triglycerides, you are more likely to also have high total cholesterol and high bad cholesterol levels. Many people with high triglycerides also have low good cholesterol levels.
Both triglycerides and cholesterol are measured in mg/dL. However, the guidelines differ for what normal levels are for each of them.
Controlling High Triglycerides: Medical Treatment
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 oilwith 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 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.
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How Are Triglycerides Measured
Your doctor may give you a common test called a lipid panel. It checks for different types of cholesterol, including the levels of the “good” kind and the “bad” kind. The American Heart Association recommends that everyone 21 and older get a lipid panel at least every 5 years.
The levels are checked after an overnight fast. Fat from a recent meal can muddy the picture.
These tests are important because you rarely have any symptoms when your triglycerides are high, unlike with many other conditions.
How Are High Triglycerides Treated
The best ways to lower triglycerides include losing weight, eating fewer calories, and exercising regularly . Diet changes that may help include avoiding fats and sugar and refined foods . Also avoid alcohol and limit fats found in meats high in saturated fat, egg yolks, and whole milk products. Trans fats, found in fried foods and commercial baked products, are unhealthy. Eat healthy monounsaturated fatsolive, peanut, and canola oils. Eat fish high in omega-3 fatty acids instead of red meat.
If diet changes and exercise dont work, medicines such as nicotinic acid , fibrates , and omega-3 fatty acids can help lower triglycerides. Niacin side effects limit its use. Cholesterol-lowering medications known as statins can also lower triglycerides, but their effect is limited.
Its also important to control diabetes since a high sugar level will also increase triglycerides.
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Is My Triglyceride Low
Triglyceride levels are something your doctor will find out through fasting blood tests. They can give you more information on what your specific numbers are and what they mean in terms of your own personal health. The following are the various ranges of triglyceride levels.
- Normal: Less than 150 milligrams per deciliter , or less than 1.7 millimoles per liter
- Borderline high: 150 to 199 mg/dL
- High: 200 to 499 mg/dL
- Very high: 500 mg/dL or above
What Is Considered Low Triglycerides
There isnt an official cutoff for low triglycerides. Most labs will consider any value below 150 mg/dL normal and values below 90 mg/dL as optimal.
If you are healthy and your values are lower than normal, you probably have nothing to worry about on the contrary.
But based on the studies above, in certain conditions, levels that are 50-70% lower than the average healthy persons might signal a more serious course of disease or higher levels of inflammation .
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Metabolic Syndrome Risk Factors
High triglyceride levels are associated with a collection of disorders known as metabolic syndrome. A person with metabolic syndrome has an increased risk of developing diabetes, stroke or heart disease.A person is classed as having metabolic syndrome when they have any three of the following factors:
- Central obesity excess fat in and around the stomach
- High blood pressure
- Higher than normal blood glucose levels
- Low HDL cholesterol
- High blood triglycerides.
What Is This Test
This group of tests measures the amount of cholesterol and other fats in your blood.
Cholesterol and triglycerides are lipids, or fats. These fats are important for cell health, but they can be harmful when they build up in the blood. Sometimes they can lead to clogged, inflamed arteries, a condition call atherosclerosis. This may keep your heart from working normally if the arteries of your heart muscle are affected.
This panel of tests helps predict your risk for heart disease and stroke.
A lipid panel measures these fats:
- Total cholesterol
- High total cholesterol
If you are already being treated for heart disease, you may have this test to see whether treatment is working.
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What Are Normal Triglyceride Levels
Normal fasting blood triglyceride levels are:
- Lower than 150 mg/dL for adults
- Lower than 90 mg/dL for children ages 10 to 19
Your doctor may diagnose you with high blood triglycerides if your fasting blood triglyceride levels are consistently 150 milligrams per deciliter or higher.
Talk to your doctor about what your numbers mean for you.
Normal Range Of Triglycerides Found Among Men : 0
Ideal values of Triglycerides depending on age :
| Age |
|---|
| 68.969 |
*Ideal values are calculated based on our database of patient records
If you want your blood test report to be interpreted by Triglycerides specialist, you can upload your report. Our Triglycerides expert will provide you with the most accurate interpretation of your blood test results and treatment within 12 hours. Upload blood test report now
Some examples of conditions that increase or decrease Triglycerides levels include:
- Taking certain drugs such as corticosteroids
- Chronic kidney disease
- Excessive alcohol use
If you want your blood test report to be interpreted by Triglycerides specialist, you can upload your report. Our Triglycerides expert will provide you with the most accurate interpretation of your blood test results and treatment within 12 hours. Upload blood test report now
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How Often Should My Triglycerides Be Tested
If youâre 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 youâre 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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Are There Any Symptoms Associated With A High Level Of Triglycerides
Usually, most people with high triglyceride levels have no symptoms and the only means of discovering a high level is with blood tests. However, in rare cases, a person may have an extremely high level of triglycerides sustained over time and the individual may experience repeated bouts of acute pancreatitis. Some of the signs and symptoms include pain in the upper half of the stomach area that develops suddenly and then gradually gets worse, fever, nausea, vomiting, and sometimes jaundice. A person with severely high levels may also develop lesions on the skin called xanthomas. These typically appear as several small, round, solid, yellow bumps mostly on the back, chest, buttocks, shoulders and thighs.
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Medications That Lower Triglycerides
Sometimes, lifestyle changes alone may not change your triglyceride levels. If thats the case, your doctor will prescribe a medication to help lower triglycerides, such as:
Statins
Fish Oil In large doses, omega-3 fatty acids can help lower triglyceride levels. The most common supplement is OTC fish oil, but they are also available by prescription.
Fibrates These medications reduce overall triglyceride levels by reducing the livers production of very-low-density lipoproteins, which are made up mostly of triglycerides. They include Lopid and TriCor .
Niacin Also known as nicotinic acid, niacin is a B vitamin that can raise HDL cholesterol while lowering levels of total cholesterol, LDL cholesterol, and triglycerides.
Your doctor may prescribe niacin if your triglyceride levels are higher than 500 mg/dL.
Since niacin can interact with other medications and may cause side effects, don’t take over-the-counter niacin without first discussing it with your doctor.
Why Do I Need The Triglyceride Level Test
The triglyceride level test will help your doctor determine your risk of developing heart disease. It helps estimate the level of LDL cholesterol in your blood. It can show if you have inflammation in your pancreas and if youre at risk of developing atherosclerosis. Atherosclerosis occurs when fat builds up inside your arteries. It can increase your risk of having a heart attack or stroke.
You should have a lipid profile done every five years as part of your regular medical exam. The lipid profile tests your levels of the following:
If youre receiving treatment for a high triglyceride level, your doctor will order this test more frequently to monitor the effectiveness of your treatment. If you have prediabetes or diabetes, its important to monitor your triglyceride level regularly because triglycerides will increase when you arent properly maintaining your blood sugar levels.
Children may also need this test if theyre at an increased risk of developing heart disease. This includes children who are overweight or who have a family history of heart disease, diabetes, or high blood pressure. Children at increased risk of developing heart disease will need this test between 2 and 10 years of age. Children under 2 are too young for testing.
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The American Heart Association Recommends
All adults age 20 or older should have their cholesterol checked every four to six years. If certain factors put you at high risk, or if you already have heart disease, your doctor may ask you to check it more often. Work with your doctor to determine your risk for cardiovascular disease and stroke and create a plan to reduce your risk.
How Is The Triglyceride Level Test Performed
The test uses a blood sample that a laboratory will analyze. A healthcare provider will draw blood from a vein in the front of your elbow or the back of your hand. Theyll follow these steps to get the blood sample:
A portable machine can also perform this test. The machine collects a very small sample of blood from a finger stick and analyzes your triglycerides as part of a lipid panel. You can often find this type of test at mobile clinics or health fairs.
In addition, you can buy a portable machine to monitor your triglycerides at home. Another way to monitor your triglycerides at home is to mail a sample of blood to a laboratory using a prepared kit. You should talk to your doctor to see if either of these at-home tests is a good option for you.
You may feel moderate pain or discomfort from the blood test. However, there are a few risks associated with giving a blood sample. They include:
- excessive bleeding
The following are the basic categories of results for triglyceride levels:
Hypertriglyceridemia is the medical term for elevated triglycerides in the blood.
- a stroke as a result of atherosclerosis
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Ldl And Hdl: What Are Triglycerides
Triglycerides are chemical compounds digested by the body to provide it with the energy for metabolism. Triglycerides are the most common form of fat in the body. They are the main ingredient in vegetable oils and animal fats.
The triglyceride molecule is a form of the chemical glycerol that contains three fatty acids. To be absorbed, these parts are broken apart in the small intestine, and afterwards are reassembled with cholesterol to form chylomicrons. This is the source of energy for cells in the body. Fat cells and liver cells are used as storage sites and release chylomicrons when the body needs the energy.
Elevated triglyceride levels are a risk factor for atherosclerosis, the narrowing of arteries with the buildup of fatty plaques that may lead to heart attack, stroke, and peripheral artery disease. Markedly elevated triglyceride levels may also cause fatty liver disease and pancreatitis.
Certain diseases and conditions may cause elevated triglyceride blood levels, for example:
Is There Anything Else I Should Know
If you are diabetic and your blood sugar is out of control, triglycerides may be very high.
Triglycerides change dramatically in response to meals, increasing as much as 5 to 10 times higher than fasting levels just a few hours after eating. Even fasting levels vary considerably day to day. Therefore, modest changes in fasting triglycerides measured on different days are not considered to be abnormal.
Certain drugs such as corticosteroids, protease inhibitors for HIV, beta blockers, and estrogens can increase blood triglyceride levels.
There is increasing interest in measuring triglycerides in people who have not fasted. The reason is that a non-fasting sample may be more representative of the âusualâ circulating level of triglyceride since most of the day blood lipid levels reflect post-meal levels rather than fasting levels. However, it is not yet certain how to interpret non-fasting levels for evaluating risk so, at present, there is no change in the current recommendations for fasting prior to tests for lipid levels.
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What Can Happen To Me If I Have High Triglycerides
High triglycerides can increase your risk of cardiovascular disease, including stroke, heart attack and heart disease.
A high triglyceride level is one of the signs of metabolic syndrome. This is a collection of health conditions that increase your risk of cardiovascular disease and diabetes.
An extremely high triglyceride level can cause inflammation of the pancreas, the organ in your abdomen that produces insulin.
What Do Low Triglyceride Levels Indicate And Can They Be Too Low
In general, having low triglyceride levels is not considered a problem. If your triglyceride levels are less than 150mg/dL, you have a lower risk of cardiovascular diseases, such as heart attack or stroke.
However, if your triglyceride levels are extremely low and less than 40mg/dL, then you may have a medical condition or disease, such as liver problems or inflammation. Your risk of dying from heart failure is also higher if triglycerides are too low.
Other causes of very low triglyceride levels include:
- Very low-fat diets
- Certain rare genetic conditions that affect how your body converts fat to energy
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Low Levels Are Usually Protective
It is well known that high triglycerides are dangerous, but little is known about the influence of low levels on health. Studies suggest that in healthy people, low triglyceride levels are beneficial. Low triglycerides are also good for people with diabetes and might also be protective against heart attacks .
One study even suggests that the lower a persons triglycerides are, the less likely they will be to die from any cause. In this study, almost 14k people were followed for 24 years. The scientist found that levels below 89 mg/dL thats almost twice lower than the borderline-normal value of 150 mg/dL were associated with a 41% lower risk of dying than high levels
So can your levels ever be too low to do any harm?
We still dont have any definitive answers, but we can look for some clues.
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