Included in your membership
Triglycerides: How Your Body Carries Fat in Blood
All NiaHealth tests are processed in Canadian-certified labs, which are highly trusted by the medical community for their accuracy and reliability. Blood and urine samples are collected by licensed medical professionals and processed using state-of-the-art equipment. NiaHealth is SOC2 Type 2 certified.
What is it?
Triglycerides are similar to the other cholesterol measures in that they are a way that the body carries fat in the blood. However, they contain a greater proportion of fats that are used as fuel in the liver and include particles called chylomicrons that carry fat from the gut to the liver. The relationship between triglycerides and cardiovascular risk is often inconsistent in epidemiological studies, however, triglycerides are very modifiable with changes in diet and exercise.
Why it matters
Persistently high triglyceride levels can lead to accumulation in the liver which is thought to be a cause of metabolic syndrome associated liver dysfunction (MASLD). MASLD greatly increases the risk of both diabetes and heart diseases so this may be why high triglycerides are often associated with increased cardiovascular risk even when LDL-C levels are normal. According to the NHANES study from 2009-2012, 25.1% of adults over the age of 20 have elevated triglyceride levels (150 mg/dL or more), with a prevalence of 28.7% in men and 21.5% in women (2). Once high triglyceride levels are detected, they can be reduced through lifestyle changes, including diet, exercise, weight loss, and smoking cessation.
Reference ranges
The American Heart Association defines levels below 1.7mmol/L (150mg/dL) as normal and has suggested an optimal target of 1.13mmol/L (100mg/dL) which we have used as our range. However, there is some evidence from other epidemiological studies that a level of 1.01mmol/L (90mg/dL) may be optimal.
Clarke, Robert, et al. "Apolipoprotein proteomics for residual lipid-related risk in coronary heart disease." Circulation Research 132.4 (2023): 452-464.
https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/products/databriefs/db198.htm
Tikhonoff, Valérie, et al. "Prognostic Value and Relative Cutoffs of Triglycerides Predicting Cardiovascular Outcome in a Large Regional‐Based Italian Database." Journal of the American Heart Association 13.3 (2024): e030319.
Talmud, Philippa J., et al. "Nonfasting apolipoprotein B and triglyceride levels as a useful predictor of coronary heart disease risk in middle-aged UK men." Arteriosclerosis, thrombosis, and vascular biology 22.11 (2002): 1918-1923.
Imano, Hironori et al. “Optimal Cut-off Points of Nonfasting and Fasting Triglycerides for Prediction of Ischemic Heart Disease in Japanese General Population: The Circulatory Risk in Communities Study (CIRCS).” Journal of atherosclerosis and thrombosis vol. 30,2 (2023): 110-130. doi:10.5551/jat.63358
Wang, Yutang. "Fasting triglycerides in the upper normal range are independently associated with an increased risk of diabetes mortality in a large representative US population." Journal of Cardiovascular Development and Disease 11.4 (2024): 128.
The Emerging Risk Factors Collaboration*. Major Lipids, Apolipoproteins, and Risk of Vascular Disease. JAMA. 2009;302(18):1993–2000. doi:10.1001/jama.2009.1619
This information is educational and does not replace medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Your results should be interpreted with a qualified healthcare professional in the context of your health history.
