The triglycerides They are a type of fat (lipid) found in the blood and are essential for the normal functioning of the body. bodybut High levels may increase the risk of heart disease, stroke, and other complications. related to the heart.
Why is it important to measure them?
The Mayo Clinic in Minnesota, in the USAstates that it is important to know how many triglycerides you have to maintain cardiovascular health and prevent more serious health problems.
Specialists recommend that adults undergo a check every 4 to 6 years, but it may be more common if you have risk factors such as a history of heart disease, diabetes, overweight or obesity, sedentary lifestyle habits, and frequent consumption of alcohol or a high-fat diet.
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How are they generated?
When you eat, the body converts all the calories that it does not need to use immediately into triglycerides, which are stored in fat cells. Later, hormones release triglycerides for energy between meals.
Regularly consuming more calories than are burned, particularly from carbohydrate-rich foods, can tend to generate high triglycerides (hypertriglyceridemia).
Triglycerides
Source: IStock
What is considered a high triglyceride level?
According to the Spanish Heart Foundation, The presence of high triglycerides can be detected with a simple blood test. The doctor usually checks them as part of a cholesterol test.
– Normal level: less than 150 milligrams per deciliter (mg/dl), or less than 1.7 millimoles per liter (mmol/l).
– Limit: 150 to 199 mg/dl (1.8 to 2.2 mmol/l).
– High level: 200 to 499 mg/dl (2.3 to 5.6 mmol/L).
– Very high: 500 mg/dl or more (5.7 mmol/l or more).
It is important to note that many times high triglycerides are a sign of other conditions that increase the risk of heart disease or stroke, such as diabetes, obesity and metabolic syndrome, having too much fat around the waist, high blood pressure, hypothyroidism, hyperglycemia and abnormal cholesterol levels.
An extremely high level of triglycerides can also cause acute inflammation of the pancreas (pancreatitis).
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Recommendations to maintain healthy triglyceride levels
• Follow a diet low in saturated fats and simple sugars.
• Exercise regularly.
• Limit alcohol consumption.
• Maintain a healthy weight.
• Manage conditions such as diabetes or high cholesterol under medical supervision.
