Diet To Lower Triglycerides: 8 Food Types You Should Know

Triglyceride found in your body is increased when your diet includes more carbohydrates. Carbohydrates contain more sugar that promotes increase in the level of trigylceride in the body. To prevent heart disease, you need a diet to lower tryglycerides in your body.

What is Triglyceride?

Triglyceride is one type of fat that is found in the body. It is the fat responsible in giving you a bigger weight mass. The standard amount of triglycerides in your body is around 10 to 250 milligrams per deciliter only. Anything above this normal value may cause heart disease in a person. 

Examples of food which stimulate the production of triglycerides are sugar and alcohol. Sugary food like molasses, jams, candies, cakes, pies, doughnuts, ice cream, sweetened gelatin and cookies should be decreased in your regular diet. The same thing goes with alcoholic beverages like beer, liquor and wines.

How do Alcohol and Sugar Work in Producing Triglycerides?

Excess alcohol and sugar in the body are not properly metabolized. They become sources of calories. These calories will then be turned into fat - in the form of triglycerides - adding to the present fats count.

This process happens when your body system feels that there is an excess amount of alcohol in the body. Instead of metabolizing the stored fats, the liver works on getting rid of the alcohol first. The liver can flush out a maximum amount of one ounce per hour or approximately 12 ounces of beer or 4 ounces of wine in the span of one hour. While the liver is working on the alcohol, the glucose is left unattended and is processed to form part of triglycerides.

To avoid this process from happening in your body, you should be cautious on what you eat. Here are some diet tips for you to lower triglycerides in the body.

Beverages

Add this in your diet to lower triglycerides in the body. The best beverage is clean, clear water. When drinking fresh fruit juice, limit it to around 4 ounces per day. You can also drink black coffee, herbal teas or plain tea and soft drinks with less sugar or with sugar replacements. You can also add clear broth and non-fat dried milk to your diet.

Meat and Fish

When it comes to meat, look for the lean meat. You can have chicken and turkey meats. Beef with fats trimmed is also a good option.

Fish is a better alternative to red meat products. Fresh fish such as salmon and tuna are good examples.

Vegetables

Vegetables are one of the best additions to your diet to lower triglycerides. Green and yellow vegetables are great combination for everyday consumption. Green vegetables include string beans and escarole while the most common yellow vegetable is squash. Vegetables with fiber contents are also ideal to be taken regularly. Examples for these vegetables are cauliflower and broccoli. Fibers help in reducing the cholesterol in the body.

Fruits

Consume at least three servings dally. One serving is equal to ½ cup of fruits. A citrus fruit is good to be taken everyday. The option of eating canned or frozen fruits is also possible, though not ideal. Just ensure that there is no syrup or sugar added to it. An apple a day really keeps the doctor away.

Breads and Grains

You can eat rice or pasta such as the spaghetti or noodles as bread substitute. ½ cup of pasta is also equal to ½ large ear of corn. Whenever you eat bread, look for the whole grain or enriched bread. A slice of bread has the same content with the 2 soda crackers.

Fats and Oils

You can still use fats and oils while cooking but make sure that you use vegetable oils because these oils are high in unsaturated fats. Examples of these vegetable oils are sunflower oil, soybeans oil, corn oil and cottonseed oils.

Desserts and Snacks

You can still indulge in desserts and snacks, so long as they contain less sugar. Alternative to sweet desserts are unflavored gelatin or pudding with skim milk. When watching movies, you can still enjoy popcorn but prefer the unbuttered one. Do not restrain yourself from eating what you like, just ensure that it is well prepared.

Others

There are still other foods not mentioned above. Like eggs, nuts and cheese and other dairy products. You can eat those foods but be sure that you take them in moderation. In creating your diet to lower triglycerides, make sure that you do not deprive yourself from eating foods that you love.