High triglycerides: symptoms, causes and drugs

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High definition of triglycerides

What are high triglycerides (hypertriglyceridemia)?

High triglycerides, also known as hypertriglyceridemia, is a condition when the levels of triglycerides (TG) in your blood are above normal limits.

The level of TG in the blood can be said normal if it is still below 150 mg / dL. If it has entered a number above 150 to 199 mg / dL, it means that it has entered the high limit and you must be alert. Meanwhile, the TG level is above 200 mg / dL, it means that the level is high and is classified as hypertriglyceridemia.

Triglycerides themselves are a type of fat (lipid) found in your blood. This fat is produced by the liver, but can also come from the food you eat. Although both are fatty substances, triglycerides are different from cholesterol.

After eating, your body will convert the unneeded calories into fat reserves called triglycerides. Then, this substance will be stored in fat cells to be used as an energy source at a later time.

If you regularly eat more high calorie foods than necessary, the levels of triglycerides in your blood can increase. The high TG level in the blood can increase the risk of heart disease, such as coronary artery disease and stroke. In fact, triglyceride levels that are too high can cause acute inflammation of the pancreas (pancreatitis).

In addition, hypertriglyceridemia is often a sign of obesity and metabolic syndrome. Metabolic syndrome is a group of conditions that include the accumulation of fat around the waist, high blood pressure, high blood sugar, abnormal cholesterol levels, including hypertriglyceridemia.

How common are high triglycerides (hypertriglyceridemia)?

High triglyceride levels are more common in the elderly or those aged over 50 years. In addition, this condition is more common in patients who are male than female.

High triglycerides can be overcome and controlled by reducing the existing risk factors. To find out more information, you can consult your doctor.

Signs & symptoms of high triglycerides

Hypertriglyceridemia generally will not cause any symptoms. However, in some cases, a person who has very high triglyceride levels, reaching 1,000-2,000 mg / dL, can experience digestive problems which are generally a sign of acute pancreatitis.

Here are some digestive problems that may be signs or symptoms of high triglyceride levels:

• Stomach ache.
• Nausea.
• Gag.
• Dyspnea (shortness of breath).
• Decreased appetite.
• Fever.

If your hypertriglyceridemia is severe or caused by a genetic condition, you may see fat deposits under the skin. These fat deposits are also called xanthomas. There are several types of xanthoma that occur in hypertriglyceridemic patients, such as eruptive xanthoma, tuberoeruptive xanthoma, tuberous xanthoma, tendon xanthoma, or palmaris xanthoma.

In addition, reported by Michigan Medicine, hypertriglyceridemia sufferers generally have high cholesterol levels. In fact, in many cases, a person only finds out that he has high triglyceride levels after taking a blood test to check his cholesterol levels.

There may be signs and symptoms not listed above. If you have concerns about a particular symptom, consult a doctor immediately.

When to see a doctor?

If you have any signs or symptoms of hypertriglyceridemia or any other questions, please consult your doctor.

Each sufferer's body shows signs and symptoms that vary. To get the most appropriate treatment and according to your health condition, always have any symptoms checked by your doctor or the nearest health service center.

Causes of high triglycerides

High triglycerides can be triggered by a primary, secondary cause, or a combination of both. Primary cause refers to genetic disorders that run in families, which are then often referred to as familial hypertriglyceridemia.

Meanwhile, secondary causes are the effects of other conditions. Here are some other conditions or factors that can increase triglyceride levels:

• Being overweight / obese.
• Smoke.
• Type 2 diabetes is not controlled.
• Underactive thyroid (hypothyroidism).
• Kidney illness.
• Liver disease.
• Calorie intake that exceeds the amount burned in the body, especially foods that contain carbohydrates and sugars.
• Excessive alcohol consumption.
• Gout.
• Certain drugs can also increase blood fat levels, such as tamoxifen, steroids, beta blockers, diuretics, estrogen hormone therapy drugs, and birth control pills.

Most cases of high triglycerides are generally caused by obesity. You can check whether you are at risk for high triglycerides or not, by monitoring your body mass index. You can check your body mass index using this BMI calculator.

Risk factors for high triglycerides

High triglycerides is a condition that can occur in almost everyone, regardless of age group or racial group. However, there are several factors that can increase a person's risk for developing this condition.

You need to know that having one or more risk factors does not mean that you must have certain diseases or health conditions. In rare cases, it is possible for you to experience a health problem without any risk factors that you have.

The following are contributing factors that put people at a higher risk of developing high triglycerides:

1. Increasing age

A person's triglyceride levels tend to increase with age. This condition is also more common in the elderly, which is around 50 to 60 years and over. However, in some cases, there are many male patients who develop this condition in their early 30s.

2. Male gender

Mild triglyceride elevations are more common in male patients than female. However, the incidence in female patients increases with age.

3. Lack of physical activity

If you do not do physical activity, such as exercise, the level of fat in your blood is at risk of increasing. This makes your body more susceptible to hypertriglyceridemia.

4. Unhealthy eating patterns

If you frequently eat fatty and high calorie foods, such as carbohydrate and sugar intake, the triglyceride levels in your blood will increase rapidly.

5. Excess weight or obesity

Being overweight or obese is also linked to high levels of sugar in your blood.

6. Excessive alcohol consumption

If you drink alcoholic beverages to excess, you are likely to experience increased levels of fat in your blood.

7. Smoking habits

Active smokers tend to be more susceptible to health problems, including high blood triglycerides.

8. Have a history of disease and undergo certain medications

If you are taking diuretic medicines, hormone therapy, beta blockers, or steroid drugs, your risk of suffering from increased levels of fat in the blood is much higher.

9. Genetic disorders

You can experience hypertriglyceridemia if you have family members or parents with the same condition.

Diagnosis & treatment of high triglycerides

The information provided is not a substitute for medical advice. ALWAYS consult your doctor.

How are high triglycerides diagnosed?

Triglyceride levels can be found by doing a blood test called a lipid profile. Not only triglycerides, this blood test can also show levels of total cholesterol, HDL cholesterol (high density lipoprotein /good cholesterol), as well as LDL cholesterol (low-density lipoprotein/ bad cholesterol).

The test will later show what your triglyceride levels are with the following guidelines:

• Normal: Less than 150 milligrams per deciliter (mg / dL), or less than 1.7 millimoles per liter (mmol / L)
• Height limit: 150-199 mg / dL (1.8-2.2 mmol / L)
• High: 200-499 mg / dL (2.3-5.6 mmol / L)
• Very high: 500 mg / dL or above (5.7 mmol / L or above).

High triglyceride levels usually occur after you eat. Hence, a blood test to measure the exact triglyceride level, which is 12 hours after you eat or drink. In other words, you should fast first before taking blood tests for triglyceride and cholesterol levels.

How are high triglycerides treated?

When you are classified as hypertriglyceridemia, your doctor will first look for possible causes. If your triglyceride levels occur due to certain medical conditions, your doctor will generally give you drugs to control the disease you have.

But not only that, you also need to lower triglyceride levels by making lifestyle changes. Maintaining food intake, maintaining a healthy body weight, and exercising regularly are the main steps that doctors generally recommend to reduce high triglyceride levels.

However, for some people with very high triglycerides, doctors may prescribe certain medications to quickly lower TG levels and to prevent pancreatitis. Some medications can lower triglyceride levels including:

• Statins, such as calcium atorvastatin (Lipitor) and calcium rosuvastatin (Crestor), are also commonly used as cholesterol drugs.
• Fibrates, such as fenofibrate and gemfibrozil (first-line drugs to lower TG associated with pancreatitis).
• High doses of omega 3s that must be used with a doctor's prescription, such as Lovaza.
• Niacin or nicotinic acid, which is commonly used to lower bad cholesterol and increase good cholesterol.

Home remedies for high triglycerides

The main way to deal with high triglyceride levels is by making healthier lifestyle changes. Here are lifestyle and home remedies that can help you deal with high triglycerides:

1. Lose weight

When you consume more calories than your body needs, your body will convert these calories into triglycerides and store them in fat cells. Therefore, losing weight is the most effective way to reduce fat levels in your blood.

One way that can help you lose weight is knowing how many calories you should eat each day. This will prevent you from eating too much until eventually fat builds up and doesn't make triglyceride levels soar. You can calculate your daily intake needs with this calorie requirement calculator.

2. Reduce consumption of sugary foods and drinks

The sugar in soft drinks, snacks, and packaged fruit juices exceeds the daily requirement for sugar in our bodies. Excess sugar in the body will be converted into triglycerides, so that your chances of developing hypertriglyceridemia are much greater.

Therefore, start reducing excess sugar intake, especially from processed foods and drinks. Replacing sugary drinks with plain water everyday can lower triglyceride levels by up to 29 mg / dL.

3. Going on a low carbohydrate diet

As with sugar and calories, excess carbohydrates in your body are converted into triglycerides which are stored in fat cells. Therefore, it is recommended that you reduce your daily intake of carbohydrates in your diet by doing a low-carb diet.

4. Consume more fiber

Fiber is very easy to find in fruits, vegetables, and whole grains. In addition, you can also consume fiber from nuts and cereals.

Adding fiber to your daily diet can help reduce the absorption of fat and sugar in your small intestine. This can significantly lower triglyceride levels.

5. Avoid trans fats

Trans fat is a type of fat that is added to processed food products so that food lasts longer when stored. These fats are commonly found in foods prepared with hydrogenated oils.

Trans fats can trigger inflammation, which can lead to various health problems, including increasing bad cholesterol levels and the risk of heart disease. Therefore, avoiding fat intake not only lowers triglyceride levels, but also prevents the risk of the disease.

6. Doing regular exercise

Apart from replacing your diet with a nutritious and nutritious menu, you also shouldn't skip physical activity. Triglycerides in the body will react in the opposite way with HDL cholesterol. If the HDL cholesterol level in the body is higher, the triglycerides in your body will decrease.

One way to increase HDL levels is to do sports, such as aerobics. This activity is believed to be very effective in reducing triglyceride levels in the body.

Some examples of other sports activities that you can try are walking, jogging, cycling and swimming. It is recommended that you exercise for at least 30 minutes and five times a week.

7. Consuming fish oil

Apart from being beneficial for heart health, fish oil is believed to help reduce high triglyceride levels in the blood. The omega 3 fatty acids found in fish oil are unsaturated fatty acids which are important for the health of your heart and blood vessels.

It is recommended that you take two measures of fish oil per week. Apart from fish oil, you can eat salmon, sardines, tuna, and mackerel to get the benefits of omega 3 fatty acids.

8. Limiting alcohol consumption

Alcohol is one of the triggers for hypertriglyceridemia because of its high calorie and sugar content and its strong effect on triglycerides. Therefore, you should limit your alcohol consumption to help lower high triglycerides.

It is recommended that men do not consume more than two glasses of alcohol a day, while women should not drink more than one glass per day.

If you have any questions, consult your doctor for the best solution to your problem.