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What Do These Triglyceride And ALT Levels Indicate?
Question: Hello. My wife's blood test indicated a slight elevation of the following tests. Is this acceptable, and if not, what might it suggest?
ALT 39 RBC 5.29 HEMATOCRIT 46.3 MPV 12.1
Also she has very good cholesterol results but her total is 213. HDL is 78 LDL is 121 and Chol/HDL ratio is 2.7. Her triglycerides show only 69.
Thank you.
ALT 39 RBC 5.29 HEMATOCRIT 46.3 MPV 12.1
Also she has very good cholesterol results but her total is 213. HDL is 78 LDL is 121 and Chol/HDL ratio is 2.7. Her triglycerides show only 69.
Thank you.
Brief Answer:
Values not in significant changes,
Detailed Answer:
Hello,
Thank you for contacting HCM to post your health query.
I reviewed very carefully your wife's blood tests results.
The values you have there, are nothing to worry about. Those changes are not significant at all.
The only one which your wife should work a bit is the total cholesterol, which should be under 200. She can take care of her diet, by removing foods rich in fats/deep fried / greasy foods or consider doing some cardio exercises regularly.
Also try to increase lot of green vegetables in the diet..
If she already does them, then its fine. She doesn't need to use medications to decrease its value, as soon as she doesn't have other medical problems like diabetes or high blood pressure.
Hope this is helpful.
Let me know if you need more clarifications.
Regards,
Dr. Papaqako
Values not in significant changes,
Detailed Answer:
Hello,
Thank you for contacting HCM to post your health query.
I reviewed very carefully your wife's blood tests results.
The values you have there, are nothing to worry about. Those changes are not significant at all.
The only one which your wife should work a bit is the total cholesterol, which should be under 200. She can take care of her diet, by removing foods rich in fats/deep fried / greasy foods or consider doing some cardio exercises regularly.
Also try to increase lot of green vegetables in the diet..
If she already does them, then its fine. She doesn't need to use medications to decrease its value, as soon as she doesn't have other medical problems like diabetes or high blood pressure.
Hope this is helpful.
Let me know if you need more clarifications.
Regards,
Dr. Papaqako
Above answer was peer-reviewed by :
Dr. Arnab Banerjee
Why do you think those numbers are considered "High" by our doctor's laboratory? Everything seems very often to be alarmingly high in the US!
About the cholesterol, all those numbers look fine, so why is the Total Cholesterol at 212?
She has been told in the past that she has some fatty liver.
About the cholesterol, all those numbers look fine, so why is the Total Cholesterol at 212?
She has been told in the past that she has some fatty liver.
Brief Answer:
LDL can be lowered.
Detailed Answer:
Hello again dear,
Those values are higher then the laboratory normal values for sure. Though, as I said, those changes are not significant. Which means that that raise maybe has happened from the fatty liver, or if your wife has taken a medicine or food that enhances the liver function. But it is not indicative of a problem. It would be if those were over 200. They most probably come out normal if you repeat the tests or if your wife takes care of the fatty liver.
Regarding the total cholesterol- that value is thr total of HDL, LDL and Triglycerides. In this case the HDL which is the good cholesterol is higher then normal, but higher is good. We don't want it that high though, but we can not do much to lower it. Triglycerides on the other side are in good values. What we can lower and we want to lower are the LDL. If your wife can get it under 60 would be great. As I said that can be achieved through diet and exercises.
Hope this is helpful.
Regards.
LDL can be lowered.
Detailed Answer:
Hello again dear,
Those values are higher then the laboratory normal values for sure. Though, as I said, those changes are not significant. Which means that that raise maybe has happened from the fatty liver, or if your wife has taken a medicine or food that enhances the liver function. But it is not indicative of a problem. It would be if those were over 200. They most probably come out normal if you repeat the tests or if your wife takes care of the fatty liver.
Regarding the total cholesterol- that value is thr total of HDL, LDL and Triglycerides. In this case the HDL which is the good cholesterol is higher then normal, but higher is good. We don't want it that high though, but we can not do much to lower it. Triglycerides on the other side are in good values. What we can lower and we want to lower are the LDL. If your wife can get it under 60 would be great. As I said that can be achieved through diet and exercises.
Hope this is helpful.
Regards.
Above answer was peer-reviewed by :
Dr. Naveen Kumar
Thank you very much, Dr. Papaqako. Is it feasible to lower the LDL from 121 to under 60? I thought under 100 was sufficient.
I am always mystified how my wife and I both eat the same food, and yet her A1C and Glucose and LDL are lower than mine (I am 60). My A1C is between 6.3-6.5 and hers stays around 5.7. I am certain genetics has some involvement in glucose tolerance. It is just mystifying.
I am always mystified how my wife and I both eat the same food, and yet her A1C and Glucose and LDL are lower than mine (I am 60). My A1C is between 6.3-6.5 and hers stays around 5.7. I am certain genetics has some involvement in glucose tolerance. It is just mystifying.
Brief Answer:
LDL under 100 in people without diabetes, and under 60 in diabetes people
Detailed Answer:
Hello,
Yes, the LDL can be achieved under 60. It is required under 100 in people who have not diabetes. In people in diabetes it should be under 60.
You wife has not risk factors, so as much as she gets it lower the better for her. But on the other side she should not feel stressed with those values, because as I said those are not problematic at all.
If you both have a healthy lifestyle, not overweight, eating lots of fruits and vegetables, exercising, not smoking and not drinking alcohol more then allowed- then the values are fine and nothing to worry about.
Regards,
LDL under 100 in people without diabetes, and under 60 in diabetes people
Detailed Answer:
Hello,
Yes, the LDL can be achieved under 60. It is required under 100 in people who have not diabetes. In people in diabetes it should be under 60.
You wife has not risk factors, so as much as she gets it lower the better for her. But on the other side she should not feel stressed with those values, because as I said those are not problematic at all.
If you both have a healthy lifestyle, not overweight, eating lots of fruits and vegetables, exercising, not smoking and not drinking alcohol more then allowed- then the values are fine and nothing to worry about.
Regards,
Above answer was peer-reviewed by :
Dr. Naveen Kumar
Thanks again. We try to eat good foods as much as we can in this society which is filled with improper foods. We are both overweight, but do not smoke or drink. We are both scared of things like diabetes. We take vitamins. Alas, life is a struggle!
Brief Answer:
Please kindly close and rate the answer.
Detailed Answer:
Hello dear,
Its true what you say, and I am sorry as well we don't know what we eat nowadays.
You seem to be controlling you diet quite well, seeing the values of your HbA1C.
Adding some exercise or daily walking to your day, would help a lot. There are some applications that may help you count your steps, which may help being aware of how much you walk during day. Small victories of increasing your walking every week or month, would add a great deal to your activity.
I hope I have helped you a bit. Please feel free to let me know if you have other questions or concerns.
If you don't have other questions for now, please kindly close and rate the answer.
Regards,
Dr. Papaqako
Please kindly close and rate the answer.
Detailed Answer:
Hello dear,
Its true what you say, and I am sorry as well we don't know what we eat nowadays.
You seem to be controlling you diet quite well, seeing the values of your HbA1C.
Adding some exercise or daily walking to your day, would help a lot. There are some applications that may help you count your steps, which may help being aware of how much you walk during day. Small victories of increasing your walking every week or month, would add a great deal to your activity.
I hope I have helped you a bit. Please feel free to let me know if you have other questions or concerns.
If you don't have other questions for now, please kindly close and rate the answer.
Regards,
Dr. Papaqako
Above answer was peer-reviewed by :
Dr. Naveen Kumar
I'm sorry, just one more thing: Are you saying that A1C values above 6.0 (like to 6.5) are not as big an issue as we are led to believe?
Brief Answer:
A1C <6.5 are normal values.
Detailed Answer:
Hello,
No, please feel free to make as many questions as you want.
The normal range for the hemoglobin A1c test is between 4% and 5.6%. Hemoglobin A1c levels between 5.7% and 6.4% indicate increased risk of diabetes, and levels of 6.5% or higher indicate diabetes.
So, basically if you have the values you mentioned above, both you and your wife are in the limits.
--If you are already taking medicines for diabetes, then you are controlling it perfectly well.
--If you are not taking medicines, means that you can go on with diet and exercises for controlling your blood sugar, until the A1C goes >7%. because in this case you may need to start the medications.
We don't want the values of A1C under 6.5 in people who take medicines for diabetes, because that would mean that the person is having times with hypoglicemia (low blood sugar), which is a dangerous condition.
Hope this is clear and helpful.
Take care.
A1C <6.5 are normal values.
Detailed Answer:
Hello,
No, please feel free to make as many questions as you want.
The normal range for the hemoglobin A1c test is between 4% and 5.6%. Hemoglobin A1c levels between 5.7% and 6.4% indicate increased risk of diabetes, and levels of 6.5% or higher indicate diabetes.
So, basically if you have the values you mentioned above, both you and your wife are in the limits.
--If you are already taking medicines for diabetes, then you are controlling it perfectly well.
--If you are not taking medicines, means that you can go on with diet and exercises for controlling your blood sugar, until the A1C goes >7%. because in this case you may need to start the medications.
We don't want the values of A1C under 6.5 in people who take medicines for diabetes, because that would mean that the person is having times with hypoglicemia (low blood sugar), which is a dangerous condition.
Hope this is clear and helpful.
Take care.
Above answer was peer-reviewed by :
Dr. Naveen Kumar
Thank you. Although hers has been steady around 5.7 for years, mine fluctuates around 6.2 to 6.5 for some years. Isn't it theoretically possible that just like with somewhat higher numbers for "normal " intraocular pressure there could be "individual normals" that are somewhat higher than "normal"?
Brief Answer:
Yes, 6.5 is a within normal limits value
Detailed Answer:
Hello,
Yes, in this case A1C is not used to control if you have diabetes or not, but rather to let you know if, if you know that you have diabetes, in case you are controlling it well.
If you haven't diagnosed diabetes yet, then the best test to check for it is to do a fasting sugar in the blood, and a 2 hour after food test of blood sugar. In case they have values over 126 for the fasting sugar, and over 180 for the 2 hour after food test, then in this case you have to start the medicines and check the diabetes control with A1C.
So, basically what I am saying is that 6.5 is a fine value, it is normal. You don't have to worry about it.
Keep in mind to do the other 2 tests once in a while and keep an eye on them, because they are more accurate for the diagnose of diabetes.
Regards,
Yes, 6.5 is a within normal limits value
Detailed Answer:
Hello,
Yes, in this case A1C is not used to control if you have diabetes or not, but rather to let you know if, if you know that you have diabetes, in case you are controlling it well.
If you haven't diagnosed diabetes yet, then the best test to check for it is to do a fasting sugar in the blood, and a 2 hour after food test of blood sugar. In case they have values over 126 for the fasting sugar, and over 180 for the 2 hour after food test, then in this case you have to start the medicines and check the diabetes control with A1C.
So, basically what I am saying is that 6.5 is a fine value, it is normal. You don't have to worry about it.
Keep in mind to do the other 2 tests once in a while and keep an eye on them, because they are more accurate for the diagnose of diabetes.
Regards,
Above answer was peer-reviewed by :
Dr. Arnab Banerjee
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