They are defined as triglycerides, the main type of fat that is transferred through the blood to the whole organism, which provides energy or, failing that, to be stored as fats in the body's cells and in this way to be able to comply with the energy requirements between each meal of the day. An interesting fact is the fact that this group represents almost 95 percent of the total fat in the diet of humans. Seen from a slightly more scientific perspective, it could be said that a triglyceride is the union of three fatty acids with a glycerol molecule.
Under normal circumstances, this type of fat has its origin from fatty acids that are obtained through absorption thanks to the intestine and which in turn come from food and from which the liver has the ability to manufacture. These pass into the blood from both organs and are transferred internally through proteins that are specially designed for it, as is the case with lipoproteins. On the other hand, chylomicrons are called lipoproteins that in their composition have a large amount of triglycerides, these are formed in the intestine after each meal, on the other hand, the liver is responsible for synthesizing other proteins in order to transport known triglycerides like VLDL.
Triglyceride levels must always be kept stable and under control, mainly for two reasons. The first one is the fact that high levels of triglycerides in the blood can cause acute pancreatitis, which is a pathology whose main characteristic is inflammation of the pancreas, this usually generates quite strong abdominal pain, and the individual who The patient has a high risk of dying in the event of complications in this process, which usually occurs in almost one in ten people.
The second reason is that it is known today that triglycerides are an independent cardiovascular risk factor, although it is not comparable to that caused by cholesterol. However, even maintaining this within the permitted limits, triglycerides represent what is known as a residual lipid risk, in short, there is the additional possibility of suffering from cardiovascular disease despite having "normal" cholesterol levels.
