This video discusses the importance of reducing triglyceride levels in order to prevent cardiovascular disease. The medical community has traditionally focused on lowering total cholesterol and LDL cholesterol, but triglycerides are often ignored. High triglyceride levels are associated with atherosclerosis, cardiovascular disease, and even sudden death. Many people are unaware of the foods that increase triglycerides, yet they are afraid of consuming saturated fat or red meat. The video emphasizes the need to prioritize metabolic health and highlights the association between elevated triglyceride levels and poor cardiovascular outcomes. Lifestyle changes such as exercise, nutrition, and sleep are crucial for lowering triglycerides.
Key Insights:
– Triglycerides, an independent biomarker, are linked with cardiovascular disease, atherosclerosis, and even sudden death.
– Many people are unaware of their triglyceride levels and the foods that increase them, instead fearing red meat and saturated fat.
– High-carb, low-fat foods can increase triglyceride levels, while processed foods are associated with metabolic health issues.
– High triglyceride levels, even in individuals on lipid-lowering medications, are strongly associated with poor cardiovascular outcomes.
– Triglyceride-rich lipoproteins and their associated remnant cholesterol particles are artherogenic and induce inflammation and clotting in the body.
– Elevated triglyceride levels, both in the fasted and non-fasted state, are linked with a higher risk of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease.
– Omega-3 fish oil and certain natural compounds like myoinositol and berberine may help lower triglyceride levels.
– Lifestyle changes, including exercise, consuming whole foods, and practicing time-restricted feeding, can effectively reduce triglyceride levels.
– It is essential to focus on metabolic health and the role of triglycerides in cardiovascular disease risk rather than purely cholesterol levels.
Transcript
For the past 60 years, the medical community has been focusing on lowering total cholesterol and LDL cholesterol while ignoring triglycerides. In today’s show, we’re going to talk about the importance of triglyceride reduction. This is an independent biomarker that is linked with cardiovascular disease, atherosclerosis, and even sudden death. I feel like not enough people care about their triglyceride levels or know about their levels and are unaware of which foods increase their triglycerides. Yet, they’re scared of red meat or saturated fat for fear that it will raise their cholesterol and LDL cholesterol, but have no problem eating the high-carb, low-fat foods known to increase triglyceride levels.
Sam, by the way, who has been our videographer since 2015, was just on a trip and texted me a picture last week about the bagels, the Wheat Thins, the pretzels, the cookies, and the Clif bars – all the high-carb, low-fat foods that people are eating, thinking that they’re helping their cardiovascular risk because they’re not having the saturated fat, the evil red meat, and all that. But we now know that these foods that are rampant in our society are actually linked with cardiovascular disease, specifically the consumption of processed foods.
Let’s take a deeper dive into what the literature shows when it comes to looking at elevated triglyceride levels and their links with cardiovascular disease. Even in people who are on lipid-lowering medications or therapy, multiple studies show a strong association with high triglycerides in a non-fasted state and poor outcomes when it comes to cardiovascular disease. Cardiovascular disease is the number one cause of premature death in this country, with 630,000 people dying from heart disease every year in the US alone. These people are in their 40s, 50s, and 60s, so triglycerides and remnant cholesterol should be a concern for everyone.
In a paper published in The Archives of Cardiovascular Disease in 2021, scientists state that there is still substantial risk of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease events despite intensive statin therapy. While LDL cholesterol levels are targeted, elevated triglycerides continue to pose a risk. Multiple studies, including the Copenhagen City Heart Study and the Women’s Health Study, have shown that increased concentrations of non-fasted triglycerides are associated with an increased risk of myocardial infarction, ischemic heart disease, and death in both men and women.
High triglyceride levels have been consistently linked with poor cardiovascular outcomes, even in statin-treated patients. In fact, post-hoc analysis of statin trials has revealed a strong association between fasting and non-fasting triglyceride levels and poor outcomes in cardiovascular disease, indicating that triglyceride concentration is an independent risk factor.
Unfortunately, many of the statin trials excluded patients with high triglycerides, so there is less focus on this biomarker within the medical community. Lifestyle interventions, such as exercise, healthy nutrition, and adequate sleep, are key in reducing triglyceride levels and improving metabolic health.
In conclusion, triglyceride reduction is crucial for overall cardiovascular health. High triglyceride levels are associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular disease, atherosclerosis, and poor outcomes. Focusing solely on LDL cholesterol and total cholesterol levels may not be enough. Lifestyle changes, such as exercise, proper nutrition, and adequate sleep, play a significant role in reducing triglyceride levels and improving metabolic health. It’s time to pay attention to triglycerides and prioritize overall metabolic health.
