[odp1979]

What's going on with this? How dangerous is it having my Tri's this high?

[princesslinda]

I have read that high triglycerides can increase your risk of heart disease, esp. if you are overweight and have high blood pressure to go along with it. I

f your blood sugars have been high lately, this can cause your triglycerides to be high as well. Alcohol and smoking can also contribute to higher levels, as can thyroid disorders.

My dad, not a diabetic, has pretty high triglycerides (he has a thyroid problem, too), and when he quit smoking, these #s improved quite a bit. Working in doctors' offices over the years, I have seen #s quite a bit higher than yours are. 150 or less is considered "normal" range now, though at one point, 200 or less was considered normal.

What does your doctor suggest you do to get them to a more "normal" range?

[Penny]

My Triglycerites were 285, 6 months ago. My Cholesterol is really good, and my blood pressure is very good too. My doctor said he isn't worried about the Triglycerides as sometimes it is just heredity. I worked real hard and lowered all my numbers again, except Triglycerides just went down a few numbers. I was told I might lower them more if I exercised more. I will try harder to do that now that the weather is improving. Considering how much younger you are, maybe that will work even better for you.

[wiseguy]

Originally Posted by odp1979

What's going on with this? How dangerous is it having my Tri's this high?

I really don't know exactly how dangerous high triglyceride levels are. I do know that they can be extremely high without causing any symptoms. A few month ago my triglycerides were 5,400 which was a complete shock to me. I was prescribed a combination of Gemfibrozil and Lipitor and my last test, a few weeks ago, came back at just over 300.

[Evermont]

The wiki on triglycerides (link) is pretty interesting. I noted that high trigs can cause pancreatitis - that would be something to avoid. There's some tips about avoiding High Fructose Corn Syrup and a bunch of other tid-bits too.

I'm focused on improving my lipid panel too. My trig was 224 last July, getting a new test next week to see where I'm at now. I should be much lower now from all the exercise and cutting back on alcohol. We shall see.

[BlueSky]

Originally Posted by odp1979

... How dangerous is it having my Tri's this high?

Not very, IMO. High triglycerides are associated with heart disease, but have never been shown to be an independent risk factor. Keeping triglycerides below 150 is considered desirable, but drug treatment is not warranted until they go over 500.

Normal triglyceride levels are less than 150 mg/dL. Borderline high levels are 150-199 mg/dl. High levels are 200 - 499 mg/dL, and very high triglyceride levels are greater than 500 mg/dL. For people with borderline or high triglyceride levels, treatment should emphasize weight reduction and exercise. Drugs are recommended for people with very high triglyceride levels.
Cholesterol and triglycerides - who needs to be treated?

High triglycerides are often accompanied by low HDL, which could be more problematic. Exercise, losing weight, restricting carbs and limiting aclcohol (in other words, healthy living ) can often turn this around. Also be aware that the triglyceride number tends to bounce around quite a lot. You really need to test it again before coming to any conclusions.

[odp1979]

Thanks for all the replies.

[NoraWI]

Drastically reducing the carbohydrates you consume will bring down triglycerides. There is a direct correlation.