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Triglycerides The fat your blood carries for energy

Also called TG, TRIG and Serum triglycerides Often on a standard checkup Fasting usually not needed

The short answer

Triglycerides are fat your blood carries for your body to burn or store. Under 150 mg/dL is normal. Most high results come from sugar, alcohol, extra weight or diabetes, and they come down when those change.1

A good result
Under 150 mg/dL if you fasted, or under 175 if you’d eaten.1,2
If yours is high
Up to 499, it adds to your heart risk over years, and lifestyle changes work well. From 500, it can also inflame your pancreas, so see a clinician soon.1
Should you test?
Yes. It’s part of a standard cholesterol test, which US guidelines recommend for all adults. Extra weight, diabetes and alcohol make a high result more likely.1

Check your result

Type the number from your report. It stays on this page.

Did you fast before your test?

Labs flag 150 or more, a cutoff meant for fasting tests. Triglycerides rise a little after a meal, so for a test taken after eating, 175 is the line.2,3

150 500 1,000
  • Normal Under 150
  • Moderately high 150 to 499
  • Severe 500 to 999
  • Very high 1,000 or more

Enter your result to see what it means and what to do next.

Got a result from another lab? Ask Picardo about it. The app explains your results, and a physician can follow up.

Cutoffs from US guidelines.1,2 The bar isn’t to scale.

What is a normal triglycerides level?

There are two lines to know. From 150 mg/dL, triglycerides add to your heart risk; from 500, they put your pancreas at risk too.1 If you’d eaten before the test, the first line moves up to 175:2

Normal Under 150 mg/dL

Normal triglycerides

Your triglycerides are in the normal range, whether or not you fasted.1,2

How worried to be

Nothing to worry about.

What to do next
  1. 1 Look at the rest of your report too. US guidelines set goals for LDL and non-HDL cholesterol, not for triglycerides.1
  2. 2 Recheck with your next cholesterol test.
Moderately high 150 to 499 mg/dL if you fasted; 175 to 499 if you’d eaten

Moderately high

This is the common kind of high triglycerides. It adds to your heart risk over years, mostly because it comes with more plaque-building particles.1,4 If it stays this high, US guidelines count it as a risk-enhancing factor: one that can tip the decision toward a statin.1

How worried to be

Worth acting on over the next few months. It isn’t urgent.

What to do next
  1. 1 If you hadn’t fasted and your result was 400 or more, repeat the test after fasting, so your LDL can be estimated accurately.1
  2. 2 Start with alcohol, added sugar and refined carbs, and lose weight if you have extra; see how to lower triglycerides below.1
  3. 3 Check HbA1c and your thyroid: diabetes and an underactive thyroid both push triglycerides up.1
  4. 4 Recheck after 4 to 12 weeks of changes. If it’s still high, see a clinician about your overall heart risk.1
Severe 500 to 999 mg/dL

High enough to risk pancreatitis

From 500, triglycerides raise the risk of acute pancreatitis, a painful inflammation of the pancreas, on top of your heart risk.1 It often takes a trigger, such as alcohol, uncontrolled diabetes or a medicine, on top of genes that make triglycerides run high.1

How worried to be

See a clinician in the next week or two. Get care the same day for severe pain in your upper belly.

What to do next
  1. 1 If you hadn’t fasted, repeat the test after fasting to confirm it.1
  2. 2 Cut out alcohol, and cut right back on added sugar and refined carbs.1
  3. 3 Ask about a fibrate or prescription omega-3. At this level, guidelines support them to bring triglycerides down and protect your pancreas.1
  4. 4 Ask about olezarsen too. This monthly injection was approved in 2026 for triglycerides of 500 or more, after trials showed about 85% fewer attacks of pancreatitis.8,9
  5. 5 Check your blood sugar, thyroid and kidneys, and go over your medicines with a clinician.1
Very high 1,000 mg/dL or higher

Very high: bringing it down comes first

At 1,000 or more, the risk of pancreatitis is high, so lowering triglycerides takes priority over heart risk.1 At this level, fat from your meals builds up in your blood faster than your body can clear it.1

How worried to be

See a clinician this week. Get urgent care for severe pain in your upper belly, especially with vomiting.

What to do next
  1. 1 Stop alcohol and added sugar completely until it comes down.1
  2. 2 Ask to see a dietitian: at this level, guidelines limit fat to 10% to 15% of your calories until triglycerides fall.1
  3. 3 Ask about medicine to lower it, such as fenofibrate or prescription omega-3,1 or olezarsen, a monthly injection that cut attacks of pancreatitis in trials.8,9
  4. 4 Ask whether a genetic test makes sense. Rare inherited conditions can cause levels this high.1
Heart Health panel
$150.90 · Triglycerides plus 16 more tests, one visit
Order
Or order just the lipid panel, $4.50

What are triglycerides?

If ApoB counts the trucks that carry fat and cholesterol through your blood, triglycerides are one kind of cargo: fuel on its way to your muscles and fat stores. When triglycerides run high, there are usually more trucks on the road, and the trucks are what matter most for your heart.1,4

Your body burns triglycerides for energy and stores the extra as body fat. They travel through your blood in particles made by your gut after a meal, and by your liver, which makes more when you eat a lot of sugar and refined carbs or drink alcohol.1

Are high triglycerides bad for your heart?

Yes, mainly because of the particles that carry them. Each one also carries cholesterol and a single ApoB, and the smaller, partly emptied ones can build plaque much as LDL does.1,2

Genetic studies suggest that lowering triglycerides protects your heart only as far as it lowers ApoB.4 A large fibrate trial found the same in practice: pemafibrate cut triglycerides by about a quarter, but ApoB didn’t fall, and neither did heart attacks or strokes.7

That’s why, once triglycerides reach 150 or more, US guidelines prefer non-HDL cholesterol or ApoB to LDL for judging your risk.1 Both include the triglyceride-carrying particles that LDL leaves out.

Read the ApoB guide

What causes high triglycerides?

Most high triglycerides come from genes and lifestyle together. The common causes:1

  • Added sugar, refined carbs and alcohol
  • Extra weight, insulin resistance and metabolic syndrome
  • Type 2 diabetes, especially when blood sugar isn’t well controlled
  • An underactive thyroid or kidney disease
  • Some medicines, including steroids, estrogen, some blood pressure pills, isotretinoin and some antipsychotics
  • Pregnancy, especially the last three months
  • Your genes: high triglycerides often run in families

How to lower triglycerides

  • Cutting alcohol, sugar and refined carbs

    Sweet drinks, sweets, white bread and alcohol all push triglycerides up; cutting back brings them down substantially.1 Above 500, cut out alcohol completely; above 1,000, cut out added sugar too.1

    How much it helps
    Some
    How sure we are
    Fairly sure
  • Losing extra weight

    Losing 5% to 10% of your weight lowers triglycerides by 20% to 30%.1

    How much it helps
    Some
    How sure we are
    Very sure
  • Regular aerobic exercise

    Aim for about 150 minutes a week of brisk activity. In trials, moderate aerobic exercise lowered triglycerides by about 19 mg/dL on average.1

    How much it helps
    A little
    How sure we are
    Very sure
  • Statins

    Lower triglycerides modestly, but they’re the first choice for cutting heart attack and stroke risk when your overall risk calls for treatment.1

    How much it helps
    A little
    How sure we are
    Very sure
  • Fibrates

    Lower triglycerides by 30% to 50%.1 Added to a statin, they haven’t prevented heart attacks, so they’re mainly used above 500 to protect the pancreas.1,7

    How much it helps
    A lot
    How sure we are
    Very sure
  • Prescription icosapent ethyl

    Purified EPA, 4 g a day. It cut heart events in one large trial, while a mix of EPA and DHA didn’t in another; see the fish oil section below.5,6

    How much it helps
    Some
    How sure we are
    Fairly sure

Retest 4 to 12 weeks after a change. That’s how long US guidelines allow for lifestyle changes to work before calling high triglycerides persistent.1

Does fish oil lower triglycerides?

Prescription omega-3s do, which is why guidelines suggest them, alongside fibrates, for levels of 500 or more.1 Whether they also prevent heart attacks depends on the kind.

In the REDUCE-IT trial, icosapent ethyl, a purified form of EPA, cut major heart events, including heart attacks and strokes, by 25%. Everyone in it was on a statin and had triglycerides of 135 to 499, plus heart disease or diabetes with other risk factors.5 It also caused slightly more atrial fibrillation, an irregular heartbeat.5 In the STRENGTH trial, a mix of EPA and DHA at the same dose made no difference to heart events.6

Part of REDUCE-IT’s benefit may have come from its placebo, a mineral oil that made cholesterol and inflammation markers worse in the comparison group.1 US guidelines say icosapent ethyl may be reasonable for adults aged 50 or older with heart disease, or diabetes plus another risk factor, whose triglycerides stay at 150 to 499 on a statin, with LDL under 100.1

Over-the-counter fish oil is a different product: a supplement, not interchangeable with the prescription kinds.2 US guidelines advise against supplements for lowering triglycerides.1 Fish oil hasn’t been shown to prevent heart disease, and it can raise the risk of atrial fibrillation.1

Who should get a triglycerides test?

Every adult, as part of a standard cholesterol test. US guidelines recommend testing at least every 5 years from age 19, and more often if you have risk factors.1 It’s especially worth checking if:1

  • You carry extra weight around your middle, or have prediabetes or diabetes.
  • You drink a lot of alcohol.
  • You take a medicine that can raise triglycerides, such as steroids, estrogen or isotretinoin.
  • High cholesterol, high triglycerides or early heart disease runs in your family.
  • You’re being treated for high triglycerides and want to see whether it’s working.

How to get a triglycerides test, and what it costs

It comes from the lipid panel, which costs $4.50 through Picardo. The Heart Health panel adds 16 more tests from the same visit for $150.90.

Recommended

Heart Health panel

$150.90
17 tests · fast for 12 hours first

Triglycerides are one part of the picture. The panel measures them too and adds ApoB and LDL particle number, which show whether your plaque-building particles are up. It also checks blood sugar, insulin, kidneys, liver and thyroid. See what’s in it

Order the Heart Health panel
Just this test

Lipid panel

$4.50
Labcorp 303756 · fasting usually not needed

The test this number comes from.

Order the lipid panel
  • Results in 2 to 3 days, in the app
  • Physician follow-up if you want one
  • Free Labcorp draw, or $75 at home
  • No other fees. HSA and FSA eligible.

It’s also part of the Base Core Annual – Men, Base Core Annual – Women and Postpartum panels, if you want a wider checkup.

Already have a result? Ask Picardo about it

Questions people ask

Do I need to fast for a triglycerides test?

Usually not. After a typical meal, the average rise is about 26 mg/dL at its peak.3 Fasting helps if you’ve had high triglycerides before or a non-fasting result of 400 or more. It also helps if high cholesterol or early heart disease runs in your family.1

What level of triglycerides is dangerous?

For your pancreas, 500 mg/dL or more, and especially 1,000 or more.1 Below 500, the concern is your heart over the years, rather than your pancreas.1

Is a triglyceride level of 200 bad?

It’s raised, but not dangerous: moderately high, and a risk-enhancing factor in US guidelines if it stays there.1 It’s also a reason to check ApoB or non-HDL cholesterol, which show whether your plaque-building particles are up too.1

Can high triglycerides be genetic?

Yes. They often run in families, usually through many small genetic effects, with lifestyle deciding how high they go.1 Rarely, a single gene causes very high levels from childhood, as in familial chylomicronemia syndrome, which needs specialist care.1

Why is my LDL missing from my report?

Labs usually work out LDL from your other numbers, and the formulas stop working when triglycerides are very high.1 A fasting retest, or an ApoB test, fills the gap.1

Often checked alongside

ApoB
How many plaque-building particles you have
Non-HDL cholesterol
The cholesterol in every plaque-building particle
HDL cholesterol
Cholesterol carried away from your arteries
HbA1c
Average blood sugar over three months

Test details

Labcorp test
Lipid Panel, 303756
LOINC
2571-8
Sample
Blood
Fasting
Usually not needed. Fast if a non-fasting result was 400 mg/dL or more.1
Typical lab range
Under 150 mg/dL
Units
mg/dL in the US. For mmol/L, divide by 88.6.1

Sources

  1. 1 Blumenthal RS, Morris PB, Gaudino M, et al. 2026 ACC/AHA/AACVPR/ABC/ACPM/ADA/AGS/APhA/ASPC/NLA/PCNA guideline on the management of dyslipidemia: a report of the American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association Joint Committee on Clinical Practice Guidelines. Circulation. 2026;153(17):e1154–e1276. doi.org/10.1161/CIR.0000000000001423
  2. 2 Virani SS, Morris PB, Agarwala A, et al. 2021 ACC expert consensus decision pathway on the management of ASCVD risk reduction in patients with persistent hypertriglyceridemia. J Am Coll Cardiol. 2021;78(9):960–993. doi.org/10.1016/j.jacc.2021.06.011
  3. 3 Nordestgaard BG, Langsted A, Mora S, et al. Fasting is not routinely required for determination of a lipid profile: clinical and laboratory implications including flagging at desirable concentration cut-points. Eur Heart J. 2016;37(25):1944–1958. doi.org/10.1093/eurheartj/ehw152
  4. 4 Ference BA, Kastelein JJP, Ray KK, et al. Association of triglyceride-lowering LPL variants and LDL-C–lowering LDLR variants with risk of coronary heart disease. JAMA. 2019;321(4):364–373. doi.org/10.1001/jama.2018.20045
  5. 5 Bhatt DL, Steg PG, Miller M, et al. Cardiovascular risk reduction with icosapent ethyl for hypertriglyceridemia. N Engl J Med. 2019;380(1):11–22. doi.org/10.1056/NEJMoa1812792
  6. 6 Nicholls SJ, Lincoff AM, Garcia M, et al. Effect of high-dose omega-3 fatty acids vs corn oil on major adverse cardiovascular events in patients at high cardiovascular risk: the STRENGTH randomized clinical trial. JAMA. 2020;324(22):2268–2280. doi.org/10.1001/jama.2020.22258
  7. 7 Das Pradhan A, Glynn RJ, Fruchart JC, et al. Triglyceride lowering with pemafibrate to reduce cardiovascular risk. N Engl J Med. 2022;387(21):1923–1934. doi.org/10.1056/NEJMoa2210645
  8. 8 Marston NA, Bergmark BA, Alexander VJ, et al. Olezarsen for managing severe hypertriglyceridemia and pancreatitis risk. N Engl J Med. 2026;394(5):429–441. doi.org/10.1056/NEJMoa2512761
  9. 9 US Food and Drug Administration. FDA approves first treatment shown to reduce the risk of acute pancreatitis in adults with severe hypertriglyceridemia. June 24, 2026. Accessed October 28, 2026. www.fda.gov/drugs/news-events-human-drugs/fda-approves-first-treatment-shown-reduce-risk-acute-pancreatitis-adults-severe-hypertriglyceridemia

Updated 28 Oct 2026.

This is general health information, not medical advice: talk to your clinician about your results and before changing any treatment.