Natural path toward lowering triglyceride levels should begin with cutting out smoking, avoiding high fat foods such as red meat, fried products, high fat dairy products and simple sugars. Incorporating a balanced exercise program into your lifestyle should be a priority.

The main goal of a nutritional approach to lowering triglycerides is to restore or improve the body’s metabolism of lipids and carbohydrates, in particular sugars and grains. This can be achieved by providing the body with vital nutrients in the right balances, eating smart with the goal of stabilizing the body’s insulin levels and undergoing the ongoing process of detoxification. This targeted nutritional approach should be backed up with a regular exercise program, consisting of both aerobic and anaerobic exercises, performed for at least 30 minutes per day, 3 times per week. People trying to lower their triglyceride levels should also quit smoking and only partake of alcohol moderately.

In addition to the above, you may consider beginning a supplementation program specifically aimed at lowering your triglyceride levels. The following supplements may be considered.

According to the National Cholesterol Education Program (NCEP), Niacin or vitamin B3 is the treatment of choice for normalizing the blood lipid levels. Several double-blind placebo-controlled studies have found that niacin increased HDL (good cholesterol) by 30% or more while reducing total cholesterol by 10-25% and triglycerides by as much as 50%. (Canner PI , 1986; McKenney JM, 1994; Superko HR, 1992) A common side effect of niacin is flushing which is the result of blood vessels opening wide. However, another form of Niacin called Inositol Hexanicotinate (IH) or “No-Flush Niacin” is proven as an effective and safer alternative to niacin. In one study, Welsh and Eade reported that inositol hexanicotinate was more effective than niacin in regulating cholesterol levels (Welsh AL, Eade M – 1961)

Omega-3 fatty acids have an amazing triglyceride lowering ability. Fish oil contains an abundant amount of omega-3’s. The typical dose is 300 mg to 1.2 grams per day. One study found that taking 8 fish oil capsules daily (providing 2.4 grams of eicosapentaenoic acid and 1.6 grams of docosahexaenoic acid) reduced triglyceride levels by about 26% and triglyceride/HDL ratio by 28% in women. Another study found an average reduction of 38% in triglyceride levels and an increase of HDL levels of 24% in both men and women consuming fish on a daily basis.

(Cullen, Paul. Evidence that triglycerides are an independent coronary heart disease risk factor. American Journal of Cardiology, Vol. 86, November 1, 2000, pp. 943-49)

A 2005 study by Gerber, et al found that In HIV+ patients with hypertriglyceridemia receiving antiretroviral therapy (ART), fish oil reduced triglycerides and was well tolerated; for patients who did not respond to either fish oil or fenofibrate alone, combining the 2 therapies resulted in greater reductions in triglycerides than either agent used alone.( 13th CROI Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections,Denver, Colorado
Feb 5- 8, 2006).

Bruce J.Holub and Adam J. Adler of the University of Guelph in Ontario conducted a 12 week trial testing the effects of fish oil combined with garlic with 50 male subjects. Triglycerides of men getting both fish oil and garlic fell 34% when LDL cholesterol dropped 9.5 percent. This combination of garlic plus fish oil prevented the moderate fish oil induced rise in LDL cholesterol that was shown in earlier studies. (Adler, A.J and B.J.Holub 1997)

Another study published in Clinical Cardiology proved that fish oils help decrease plasma triglyceride levels. (Harris W.S., 1999). Supplementation of highly purified DHA and EPA range from 3 to 5 g/d have consistently shown triglyceride-lowering properties. (Grimsgaard S, Bonaa KH, 1997) In addition, Mayo Clinic published a review of 18 trials including 823 subjects and established that fish oil supplements significantly reduced triglycerides. (Motori VM, 2000). According to American Heart Association’s guidelines (AHA Statement 11/18/2002), people who have elevated triglycerides may need 2 to 4 grams of EPA and DHA per day provided as a supplement.

Recent studies have shown that Cinnamon is useful in reducing the triglyceride level. The study conducted at the NWFP Agricultural University in Peshawar, 60 patients with type 2 diabetes were randomly assigned to one of 6 groups. After 40 days of treatment, triglyceride concentrations were decreased by 23-30% with 3 g of cinnamon (Diabetes Care – 2003 Dec; 26)

Khan A, Safdar M, Ali Khan MM, Khattak KN, Anderson RA. Cinnamon improves glucose and lipids of people with type 2 diabetes. Diabetes Care. 2003 Dec;26(12):3215-8..

In an animal study, researchers gave 200 mg/kg of cinnamon extract resulting in decreasing blood glucose concentration. Concentration of triglycerides and total cholesterol were significantly lower after the 6-week study. The authors wrote that “these results suggest that cinnamon extract has a regulatory role in blood glucose level and lipids,”

Kim SH, Hyun SH, Choung SY. Anti-diabetic effect of cinnamon extract on blood glucose in db/db mice. J Ethnopharmacol. 2006 Mar 8;104(1-2):119-23. Epub 2005 Oct 5.

Artichoke extract exerts a dual effect on cholesterol metabolism. First of all, it decreases the manufacture of cholesterol in the liver.³ Approximately 80-90% of the cholesterol in the blood is manufactured by the liver and is not derived from the diet. The other way in which artichoke extract effects cholesterol levels is by increasing the conversion of cholesterol to bile acids.^1,3

One of the functions of cholesterol is to be the building block of bile acids. I think in many people one of the reasons that their cholesterol levels are high is because there is impaired conversion of cholesterol to bile acids. In this scenario, I believe the low bile acid levels result in sending a powerful signal to the liver to provide more cholesterol.

In the study evaluating artichoke extract in 553 patients with various digestive disorders in addition to improving digestion, the artichoke extract significantly lowered blood cholesterol levels.² In spite of the relatively short duration of therapy (6 weeks on average), the study showed an 11.5% reduction in the average serum cholesterol from an initial average of 264 mg/dl to 233 mg/dl. Serum trigylcerides were also reduced from initially 214.97 mg/dl to 188.07 mg/dl, corresponding to a decrease of 12.5%.

References

1. Kraft K: Artichoke leaf extract – Recent findings reflecting effects on lipid metabolism, liver and gastrointestinal tracts. Phytomedicine 4:369-78, 1997. 2. Fintelmann V: Antidyspeptic and lipid-lowering effects of artichoke leaf extract - Results of clinical studies into the efficacy and tolerance of Hepar-SL® forte involving 553 patients. J Gen Med 2:3-19, 1996. 3. Gebhardt R: Artichoke extract- - In-vitro proof of cholesterol biosynthesis inhibition. Medwelt 46:348-350, 1995.