Last week I talked about triglycerides and how they affect our health, and this week we want to go a little further in that discussion, to look at some of the dietary changes which will help you reduce your triglyceride levels.

Three Ways to Lower Your Triglyceride Levels

1. Reduce your processed carb intake

The standard advice, which gravitates towards a diet lower in fat as a way to protect your heart, may be doing more harm than good.

The fact is, that when most people go on a low fat diet they replace those calories from fat with calories from carbohydrate foods.

Think about how much bread, pasta, potato chips, cookies, breakfast cereals you eat in the course of one day…. do carb foods make up the highest percentage of your energy intake (compared to proteins and fats)?

If your diet is high in these sugary foods, then you will be increasing your triglycerides levels as a result.

A 2008 study published in the New England Journal of Medicine, compared a low-carb diet versus a Mediterranean diet versus a low-fat diet. They found that triglycerides were reduced most in the low-carb group — 23.7 mg/dL as compared to 2.7 mg/dL in the low-fat group.

They also found that the ratio of total cholesterol to HDL cholesterol decreased during both the weight-loss and the maintenance phases. The low-carbohydrate group had the greatest improvement, with a relative decrease of 20 percent, compared to a decease of 12 percent in the low-fat group.

So, which foods should routinely be avoided?

• Sweetened drinks — see next point
• Table sugar
• Sugary breakfast cereals
• Cakes, cookies, pastries, granola bars, candies, ice cream
• Be aware of foods labeled “fat-free,” which normally contain more sugar and equal calories than the full-fat varieties.

Also remember that naturally occurring sugars, when eaten in excess, can also raise your triglyceride level.

2. Watch your drinks

Alcohol increases triglyceride levels, in fact, even small amounts of alcohol can lead to large changes in your triglyceride levels.

Men should definitely not be exceeding 2 alcoholic drinks per day, and women should limit to their intake to one drink per day, or less.

Soft drinks, fruit drinks, bottled iced tea etc., are also high in sugar, and should not be part of your regular consumption. 

So, what can you drink?

Well, first and foremost, water. Green tea is also helpful (catechins are though to help reduce triglyceride levels, however you need to be drinking a lot to get the benefits), unsweetened tea and coffee are also acceptable beverages.

3. Lose weight

If you have high triglycerides, you must try to get to your ideal weight for height.

Another study published in 2010, found that for every kilogram of weight lost, triglycertides were reduced -2.6 mg/dL, and HDL cholesterol increased 0.22 mg/dL per kilogram body weight.

So, what was the most successful diet? In this case, highest weight losers in the low glycemic group consumed,