How to Lower Triglycerides Naturally

Have you been diagnosed with elevated triglycerides?

If so, today you’re going to learn about the connection between triglycerides and your gut.

You see, your gut health, metabolic health, and heart health are interconnected. In fact, every system of your body needs each other to function properly. In this newsletter, we’ll explore the fascinating connection of gut health and triglyceride levels.

First, let’s define triglycerides.

Triglycerides are a type of fat (lipid) in your body that is crucial to your existence. You can get fats from food, but your body also makes triglycerides from stored excess calories.

Triglycerides are essential but when the levels go above the normal range, it’s a symptom of your system being out of balance. 

You can check your triglycerides through a lipid profile or lipid panel, a common laboratory blood test using blood that measures the level of fats in your blood as well as the vehicles for delivering them. 

If you have had yours tested recently, you can compare your results with the following ranges do you fall:

• Normal range – less than 150 mg/dL (milligrams per deciliter)
• Mildly elevated – 150-199 mg/dL
• Moderately elevated – 200-499 mg/dL
• Severely elevated – 500mg/dl and above

High triglycerides increase your risk for serious diseases including heart problems, the hardening of blood vessels (atherosclerosis or arteriosclerosis), metabolic syndrome, and pancreatitis.

What causes high triglycerides?

To avoid these conditions, diet and lifestyle choices can make a difference. Here are some factors that can cause elevated triglycerides.

• Consistently eating more calories than your body can use, (which also contributes to being overweight).
• Eating an imbalanced diet, especially one that is rich in sugar and refined carbohydrates (bread, pasta, cereal, crackers, etc).
• Smoking and drinking alcohol regularly.
• Living a sedentary lifestyle.
• Having health conditions such as diabetes and diseases affecting the thyroid, liver, and kidneys.
• Taking medications including steroids, beta-blockers, hormone replacement, and immunosuppressants.

The gut-triglyceride connection

There are also some interesting and lesser talked about connections between your gut and your triglyceride levels. Specifically, there is substantial evidence that spore-based probiotics are effective in positively impacting triglyceride levels.

• Certain probiotics can bind to fatty molecules in your digestive tract – blocking dietary triglycerides from being absorbed and released into the bloodstream.
• Probiotics can influence liver function. Your liver is responsible for making and metabolizing triglycerides.
• Some strains of probiotics produce compounds known as short-chain fatty acids (SCFA’s). SCFA’s modulate the production and metabolism of triglycerides.

So you can see how your gut health and the presence of beneficial bacteria is going to support you to have healthy triglyceride levels and good overall health.

7 tips for lowering triglycerides naturally

Based on the lifestyle markers I mentioned a moment ago, you can help bring down triglyceride levels naturally by:

• Aiming for a normal body weight/healthy body composition (and healthy waist-to-hip ratio).
• Eating a healthy, well-balanced diet (primarily fresh, whole foods with an emphasis on protein and fiber-rich produce) that promotes a healthy microbiome.
• Eating fermented, probiotic-rich foods or taking a good probiotic to support a rich and diverse community of healthy bacteria.
• Quitting smoking, and minimizing alcohol intake.
• Living an active lifestyle (moving around throughout the day, aiming for 10k steps) and getting daily exercise (cardio and strength training).
• Having enough sleep (7+ hrs/night).
• Managing stress in healthy ways (breathing deeply, meditating, dancing, healthy hobbies, music, reading, talking constructively with people who are supportive, etc).

These are important lifestyle factors that when we commit to doing consistently can lower triglycerides and improve your overall health. 

Focusing on your gut health will always be an essential foundation to creating great health. Now you have more reasons to take care of our gut!

It is my passion to work with people like you whose health symptoms are getting in the way of you living life fully and with a sense of freedom in your body. I can help you to regain your health so you can feel great and free to enjoy life fully. 

If you’re ready to discover where your best health has been hiding, I’d love to connect with you!

Apply for a complimentary Unstoppable Health Discovery Session. bit.ly/schedulinghealth (subject to availability).
 

Until next time, I’m wishing you unstoppable health!
~Rebecca