Pretty much every person concerned with their well-being knows to avoid cholesterol as much as possible and is aware of the negative side effects associated with it. On the other hand, another substance which is just as harmful to your health – triglycerides – remains relatively unknown among the same groups of people. Which is quite problematic when you consider the multitude of negative effects associated with high levels of the substance in your bloodstream, especially with regards to certain types of disease.

Triglycerides are developed by the organism itself as a byproduct of the processing of certain kinds of fats. Foods like vegetable oil and animal fats tend to result in the highest rate of triglycerides production. They’re typically formed as a result of the body being unable to fully process the nutrients you’ve taken in, and tend to clog up the blood vessels quite severely, even in small concentrations.

Among the people who’re aware of triglycerides and their causes, not many actually know the exact range of diseases encompassed by the substance. Since triglycerides tend to stick to blood vessels, they’re commonly associated with conditions such as heart disease and strokes – but the reality is that their effects extend far beyond that.

People who’re at risk of developing diabetes are exposing themselves to a severely increased level of danger if they don’t control the levels of triglycerides in their blood. Research has shown an alarmingly high correlation between high levels of triglycerides and diabetes, especially type 2 diabetes. The dangers seem to grow even greater when you add a condition of low HDL levels to the mixture – a person with both these factors present, who’s also suffering from some degree of obesity, is extremely likely to develop diabetes.

If you’ve already been diagnosed with diabetes, you’ll have to put in all the effort you’re capable of in order to avoid raising the levels of triglycerides in your bloodstream above a certain threshold. Most physicians would prescribe a specialized diet which should help you control the substance’s presence in your body, but in more severe cases even that’s not enough – leaving you with no other option but to use medications. In any case, you should keep in mind that allowing your levels of triglycerides to rise when you’re already suffering a diabetes condition would increase the risk of being struck by a sudden heart-related problem tremendously, and can cause numerous other problems along the way as well.

As with most other factors related to diabetes, one of the best courses of prevention is a solid training routine and it’s been shown that exercising enough is a good way to control your levels of triglycerides, especially when combined with a diet rich in omega-3 fatty acids. That’s the reason physicians and dietitians typically include flax seed oil and fish in the diets they develop for their diabetic patients, as these are foods rich in omega-3 fatty acids and can be very effective in maintaining the levels of triglycerides at an acceptable level.

Last but not least, don’t forget the “prime evil” – alcohol. You’re probably already trying to develop habits to stay away from it as much as you can if you’ve been diagnosed with diabetes or are approaching the condition rapidly, but you should keep in mind that with regards to triglycerides, it’s even more important to make sure that you watch how much you’re drinking, alcohol has been known to increase the substance’s levels at a very high rate.