Your levels of triglycerides, one of your blood's two major fats, can be significantly increased or decreased by your diet. "The New Pritikin Program," "Dr. Atkins' New Diet Revolution," the websites of several medical schools and "What Are Triglycerides," a chapter in "Controlling Cholesterol," all include detailed information on the food-triglyceride connection. The evidence about a herbs-triglyceride connection is less extensive, but some herbs do reduce triglyceride levels, reports the University of Michigan Health System.
Significance
The impact of herbs and diet on triglycerides is important because high triglyceride levels can cause cardiovascular disease. You are at moderate risk of cardiovascular disease if you are a 20- to 39-year-old woman and your level of triglycerides is between 78 and 106 mg per dL, "Controlling Cholesterol" reports. Other moderate-risk triglyceride levels are 99 through 140 for 40- to 59-year-old women, 111 through 146 for women older than 60, 94 through 133 for young men, 122 through 170 for middle-age men and 111 through 154 for older men.
Benefits
Many studies show the benefits of eating large amounts of fish with omega-3 oil, "Controlling Cholesterol" reports. Patients who replicated the diet of Greenland's Eskimos, who have extremely low triglyceride levels, had "much lower" levels of triglycerides after adding a lot of cod, flounder, salmon and tuna to their diets, according to a study conducted by Oregon Health Sciences University. There is far less evidence on herbs, but taking 15 to 20 drops of Achillea wilhelmsii twice a day for six months reduced triglycerides significantly, the University of Michigan reported.
Time Frame
Herbs and diet can reduce triglyceride levels very rapidly. If you have a high triglyceride level, "it will have almost certainly plummeted dramatically" within 90 days after switching to a diet with few refined carbohydrates (starches and sugars), "Dr. Atkins' New Diet Revolution" reported. The trials on the fenugreek herb are preliminary, but one trial showed that taking 25 to 50 g of the herb daily was effective in reducing triglycerides within 20 days, the University of Michigan reported.
Recommendations
You should eat foods packed with soluble fiber to reduce your triglycerides. "The New Pritikin Program" recommends many beans, fruits, grains and vegetables. Foods with at least 1.5 g of soluble fiber per serving include barley, oat bran, figs, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, yams, kidney beans, pinto beans and black-eyed peas. Herb experts recommend that you research guggul, psyllium seeds and husks, and a red yeast rice extract called Cholestin because they have shown promise in clinical trials that have not been confirmed, the University of Michigan reported.
Warnings
Eating few refined carbohydrates is not advisable, even though they raise triglycerides, because breads, cereal, pasta and rice help fight heart disease overall, the University of Massachusetts Medical School reports. You should try and eat whole grain bread, pasta and other carbs, which lower triglycerides and heart disease risks. You should also not consume too much green tea. You must drink at least four cups of green tea daily to reduce triglyceride levels, but the herb does contain caffeine, the University of Michigan reports.
References
- University of Michigan Health System: High Triglycerides
- University of Massachusetts Medical School: What You Can Do To Lower Your Triglycerides
- "Controlling Cholesterol"; Dr. Kenneth H. Cooper; 1989
- "The New Pritikin Program"; Robert Pritikin; 1990
- "Dr. Atkins' New Diet Revolution"; Dr. Robert Atkins; 2002
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