DEAR DR. DONOHUE: Please clear something up for me: Triglycerides. It appears on the printout of my yearly lab tests. Triglycerides are marked as being high, but no one said anything about them to me. Why not? Can I ignore them? — R.T.

ANSWER: Triglycerides are fats. The white to yellow stuff you see on a cut of meat is triglycerides. An accumulation of triglycerides in the abdomen makes it stick out. Triglycerides have a function. They’re a source of energy for the body and its cells. Excess calories are stored as triglycerides for later use.

Triglycerides have a hand, along with cholesterol, in plugging arteries and thereby increasing the risk of heart attacks and strokes. They aren’t as involved as cholesterol is, but they can’t be ignored.

A normal triglyceride reading previously was less than 150 mg/dL (1.7 mmol/L). Values from 150 to 199 (2.25) are considered borderline, and ones from 200 (2.26) to 499 (5.64) are high. The American Heart Association has lowered the normal triglyceride level to 100 mg/dL (1.13 mmol/L).

At extremely high levels, triglycerides can inflame the pancreas — pancreatitis.

Weight loss, limiting alcoholic drinks, greatly decreasing the intake of sugar and sugary foods and cutting back on the amount of fatty meats and other fatty foods bring triglycerides down.

If the above steps don’t budge the triglyceride reading, medicines can lower them. Lopid, Tricor and niacin work well. Statins, the drugs that the entire population (so it seems) takes for cholesterol control also have a lowering effect on triglycerides.

You might not have heard of the metabolic syndrome, but it’s a common condition consisting of obesity, a large waist — greater than 40 inches for men, 35 inches for women — low HDL cholesterol (good cholesterol), a slightly higher-than-normal fasting blood sugar and higher-than-normal blood pressure. High triglycerides also are part of the syndrome. This constellation of findings greatly increases the risk of stroke and heart attack.

DEAR DR. DONOHUE: My husband, 46, died suddenly and unexpectedly from a heart attack. An autopsy showed that he died from what the doctor said was a minor heart attack. How does a minor heart attack kill? It was major for him and me. — C.C.

ANSWER: The pathologist who performed the autopsy must have found that only a small section of heart was involved, and only a small heart artery was obstructed. Minor heart attacks can lead to major complications, including death. They can generate abnormal heartbeats, so abnormal that the heart’s pumping action stops.

You have my deepest sympathy.

The booklet on heart attacks explains why they happen and how they’re prevented. Readers can order a copy by writing: Dr. Donohue — No. 102, Box 536475, Orlando, FL 32853-6475. Enclose a check or money order (no cash) for $4.75 U.S./$6 Can. with the recipient’s printed name and address. Please allow four weeks for delivery.

DEAR DR. DONOHUE: Two years ago, I had bursitis in my left shoulder. Two weeks ago, I got it in my right shoulder. On both occasions, the X-ray showed calcium deposits in the shoulders.

I take a daily calcium tablet. Could it contribute to the calcium in my shoulders? — Y.M.

ANSWER: Your calcium supplement has nothing to do with calcium deposits in your shoulder or in the inflammation of the bursa.

Those deposits were laid down by your body to protect the shoulder against inflammation. It’s one of the ways the body deals with it.

Dr. Donohue regrets that he is unable to answer individual letters, but he will incorporate them in his column whenever possible. Readers may write him or request an order form of available health newsletters at P.O. Box 536475, Orlando, FL 32853-6475. Readers may also order health newsletters from www.rbmamall.com.

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