Is it important to lower elevated serum triglyceride levels?
Yes. The most important lipoprotein to lower is the LDL cholesterol. The most important lipoprotein to raise is the serum HDL cholesterol. The third most important lipoprotein to alter is the serum triglyceride level (29). Although the LDL particles are the most atherogenic, the very-low-density lipoprotein particles contain atherogenic components as well. In general, the higher the serum triglyceride level, the lower the HDL cholesterol level. Thus, by lowering the serum triglyceride level, the effect often is to raise the serum HDL cholesterol level, and the higher the HDL cholesterol, the lower the risk of atherosclerotic events. When the triglyceride level is elevated, the LDL cholesterol particles tend to be small and dense, and these are the most atherogenic ones. When the triglyceride level is lowered, the LDL particle size tends to increase, and the larger and more buoyant LDL particles are not as atherogenic as the small dense ones. A third reason to lower the triglyceride lev
