Supplement Detective

Summary: Mainstream advice on how to lower triglycerides is often a mix of good and bad information.  This probably explains why you are either seeing your triglycerides drop agonizingly slow or not at all.

Q: One year ago my triglycerides were over 200 so my doctor enrolled me in a ‘cholesterol’ study where I get my blood drawn frequently.  Now, the triglycerides are at 200 and I’m eating low fat.  Why aren’t the triglycerides going down more?

A: If you want a baseline understanding of triglycerides and some of the things that really makes your blood levels go up and down take a look at my article called what are triglycerides.  Too often, because triglycerides are fat, dietitians and other health care providers tell you to avoid fats.

I talk to a fair amount of people who desperately want to lose weight and get their cholesterol lower.  As part of that they want to get their triglycerides lower.  But people needlessly struggle with this.  And it’s understandable when you consider that the advice they are following is WRONG.

What Are Triglycerides?

It’s a false theory because triglycerides are in all food groups.  More so, the types of triglycerides you’re getting are even more important.

But, to prove my point lets look at one of the top sites online showing visitors how to lower triglycerides.  Now, I know dietitians and respect them but this advice is off base and if you are following advice similar to this then it’s no wonder your triglycerides aren’t dropping.

Here’s what they recommend with my commentary after each:
Keep an active lifestyle (good).  Focus on a diet low in saturated fats (correct, although some saturated fat is needed. They then go on to recommend low fat dairy or cheese instead of regular version.  And to avoid butter.  They think all fat is the enemy which is a misnomer).  Include high fiber foods like whole grains, oatmeal and fruits (keep some fruits but ditch the oatmeal and grains).  Limit sugar intake like pop, Kool-aid, etc. (good, but where is the advice on limiting the biggest sugar culprit – processed foods?).  Limit alcohol to 1 drink/day (Not bad advice per say).  Use BMI calculator (Bad.  The BMI is notoriously inaccurate.  In fact, the last time I checked mine I was borderline obese at 6′1″ and 180 pounds.  I would guess that by body fat hovers around 10% to 12%).  Eat an Omega 3 rich diet (good)

How to Lower Your Triglycerides: The First Step

I do NOT follow any sort of USDA Food Pyramid which most dietitians I encounter seem to love.  Instead I follow some simple rules that I have laid out in my healthy eating section but that I’ll summarize for you here.

Stop eating processed foods.  Either transition away from them slowly over three or four weeks or go cold turkey.  But, within a month your goal should be no processed foods.  I emphasize all processed foods including bagels, breads, pasta, rice, flavored yogurts (and regular yogurts except in rare circumstances), energy bars, “gainer drinks”, creamers, etc.  If man made it then you shouldn’t eat it.  Dietitians will argue that whole grains are needed for fiber.  They aren’t.  The best source of fiber are vegetables and fruits (in that order).  Whole grains must also be milled and processed for consumption.  In short, they are processed and could not be consumed by man without preparation.  Coffee is OK.  No creamer though.  Eliminate margarine with all of it’s trans fats and other vegetable shortening.  If I cook eggs in the morning (another maligned food because of cholesterol levels – don’t pay any attention an egg is an excellent food) I line the pan with real butter.  I have basically cut my once high dairy consumption to little or nothing.  If I do consume dairy it is whole milk or half and half with real cheese.  Low fat labeling you will not find in my fridge.  I drink alcoholic beverages.  For example, on my days off I’ll have one, usually two beers around lunch time or a glass of wine.

I could go into more depth and if you’d like simply check out my healthy eating section.  But you get the point.

The Results Speak for Themselves

You may find that if you eat the traditional, dietitian-recommended route your triglycerides may slowly trickle down.  But they often stabilize around 200 or a little lower.  But, once they stabilize they still tend to be higher than either doctors or the patients want so then they put them on a prescription medication.

Another thing about the processed foods that I don’t see mainstream mention is how they trigger insulin release in your body which also triggers your body to assimilate triglycerides.  So, high carb foods are already high in triglycerides.  Then you eat them and make even more because of the insulin trigger that is pulled.

So, does my eating style produce results?  I recently had my triglycerides measured at 33 which is extremely low.  Incidentally, my HDL was 54 which puts one of my main cardiac risk ratios (TG/HDL) at basically an undetectable level.  So I would say it’s done it’s job.

And what is everybody’s favorite number: total cholesterol?  I could care less because it’s not important but as an aside it’s 145.

As an aside, my thinking is clear and my weight is a complete non-issue.  My wife has followed a similar path.  While she hasn’t had her labs measured I would assume they are similar.  In addition, her gastrointestinal problems of the past have disappeared.  This is a similar path to others who’ve adopted my eating style.

So, is your current eating style doing you any favor in regard to actually lowering your triglycerides and other cholesterol levels?  Likely not as much as you like.  If you aren’t sure simply compute your cardiac risk factor I gave above.  I bet the number will shock you – it should be below 2.

If it’s high, lower it.  But do it in an effective, natural way.  They way your body is designed to work.