Triglycerides
Triglycerides
What this test measures
Triglycerides are another type of fat in your blood. Your body uses them for energy. High levels can increase your risk of heart disease, especially when combined with high cholesterol.
Understanding the numbers
Typical range: Below 1.7 mmol/L (fasting)
Levels between 1.7-2.3 mmol/L are borderline high. Above 2.3 mmol/L is high.
- Normal: 0–1.7 mmol/L
- Borderline: 1.7–2.3 mmol/L
- High: 2.3–5.6 mmol/L
- Very high (pancreatitis risk): 5.6–15 mmol/L
Key numbers
- 1.7 mmol/L — Upper limit of normal (fasting)
- 5.6 mmol/L — High — refer if persistent
- 10 mmol/L — Pancreatitis risk — urgent review
- 11.3 mmol/L — Severe — same-day GP or A&E
Fasting upper limit of 1.7 mmol/L is from NICE CG181 / CKS lipid modification. 5.6 mmol/L triggers specialist referral under NICE CG181; values above ~10–11 mmol/L significantly raise acute pancreatitis risk and need urgent assessment.
Ranges can vary slightly between laboratories — your report may show slightly different numbers. This page does not read or interpret your result; your GP looks at it alongside your history and other tests.
What a higher-than-normal result can mean
- You have too much fat in your blood
- This can increase your risk of heart problems
- Often linked to being overweight, eating too much sugar, or drinking alcohol
- Cutting down on sugar, alcohol, and fatty foods can help
When not to wait
Very high triglycerides can inflame the pancreas. If you know your triglycerides are very high and you have any of these symptoms, do not wait for your next appointment.
- Severe pain in the upper tummy, often spreading to the back
- Being sick repeatedly or unable to keep fluids down
- Fever with tummy pain
- A fatty rash (small yellow bumps on skin)
- Confusion or drowsiness
- Known very high triglycerides with any new severe abdominal pain
Call NHS 111 for urgent advice, or 999 if someone is seriously unwell.
Questions you could ask your GP
- How much should I reduce my alcohol intake to improve my triglycerides?
- Which foods are most likely to raise my triglyceride levels?
- Could my high triglycerides be related to diabetes?
- Do I need medicine to lower my triglycerides, or can lifestyle changes be enough?
Example stories
These are made-up examples to show how results are talked about in real appointments. They are not real patients.
Borderline on NHS health check
Sunita's triglycerides were 1.9 mmol/L on a non-fasting sample. Her waist was 92 cm and she'd gained weight since working from home.
What the GP said: “This is a borderline result. A lot of triglyceride comes from what you eat and drink — cutting down on sugary drinks, alcohol and refined carbs often brings it back to normal. Let's repeat fasting in three months.”
What happened next: Sunita cut out fizzy drinks and reduced her evening wine. Her fasting repeat was 1.3 mmol/L.
Borderline triglycerides are very responsive to lifestyle — sugar, alcohol and refined carbs push them up; cutting back usually brings them down within months.
High triglycerides, drinks daily
Kiran's fasting triglycerides were 4.8 mmol/L. He drank two or three beers most evenings and takeaway was two or three nights a week.
What the GP said: “This is genuinely raised. Alcohol is a big driver here, and so are sugary or refined-carb meals. I'd like you to try four weeks with less alcohol and see how you feel, and we'll repeat the blood test.”
What happened next: Kiran cut alcohol to weekends only and swapped takeaways for home cooking. At eight weeks his triglycerides were 2.1 mmol/L.
Triglycerides drop faster than almost any other blood fat when you reduce alcohol and sugar. A four to eight week lifestyle trial is often enough to tell whether medication is needed.
Pregnancy lipid screen
Dipa had triglycerides of 3.2 mmol/L at 24 weeks pregnant.
What the GP said: “Triglycerides rise during pregnancy — often two or three times baseline. This level is expected and not dangerous. We'll recheck after delivery to see your true baseline.”
What happened next: Post-delivery Dipa's triglycerides were 1.4 mmol/L.
Pregnancy raises triglycerides naturally. Results in pregnancy are interpreted differently — your GP or midwife will usually wait and repeat the test after delivery.
Severe pain — hospital admission
Vikram was admitted with severe upper abdominal pain and vomiting. His triglycerides were 12.4 mmol/L and his amylase was raised. He was diagnosed with acute pancreatitis caused by very high triglycerides.
What the GP said: “Triglycerides this high can cause pancreatitis directly. We need to bring them down urgently with a very strict low-fat diet, and once you're out of hospital, a fibrate medicine and possibly an omega-3 prescription.”
What happened next: Vikram recovered from the admission, started fenofibrate plus a very low-fat diet and no alcohol. Three months later his triglycerides were 4.2 mmol/L and he was referred to the lipid clinic.
Triglycerides above about 10 mmol/L can inflame the pancreas. This is a genuine emergency — severe tummy pain with known high triglycerides needs same-day assessment. Treatment is urgent and effective.
Before you act on anything here
This page is general information, written to help you understand — it is not personal medical advice and it cannot tell you what is right for you. Talk to your own GP, pharmacist or nurse about your own health.
- Need help now but it's not an emergency? Call NHS 111 or use 111.nhs.uk.
- Emergency? Call 999 or go to A&E.