Triglycerides
Triglycerides are strongly right-skewed at all ages, with the upper tail rising sharply in middle age as insulin resistance and metabolic dysfunction become more prevalent in the US population.
Unit: mg/dL · 12 slices · age and sex · 1 source
Filed under panels: Lipid Panel , Metabolic Panel · topics: Lipids , Metabolic
Triglycerides are measured from a fasting blood sample. The distribution is more right-skewed than any other standard lipid measure, meaning the upper tail extends substantially further than the lower tail relative to the median. These percentiles are derived from the full US fasting subsample and include individuals with metabolic syndrome, diabetes, and those on lipid-lowering therapy. Note: 1 mg/dL is approximately 0.01129 mmol/L.
Population Distribution
Browse by Demographic
| Age (years) | male (mg/dL) | female (mg/dL) |
|---|---|---|
| 20-29 | 31–215 (72.4) | 32–213.1 (67) |
| 30-39 | 40–314.1 (97) | 29–224.3 (75) |
| 40-49 | 39.3–305 (105.7) | 39–223.3 (86) |
| 50-59 | 45.8–324 (98) | 35.4–203 (99) |
| 60-69 | 43–228 (110) | 43–216.2 (98) |
| 70+ | 43–277.2 (98) | 41–213.9 (95) |
Frequently Asked Questions
Why are triglyceride distributions so skewed compared to other lipids?
Triglyceride levels are highly sensitive to recent diet, alcohol intake, insulin resistance, and genetic variation in lipoprotein lipase activity. This produces a long upper tail in the population distribution — a small proportion of individuals have extremely elevated values that pull P95 and especially P99 far above the median.
Why must triglycerides be measured fasting?
Triglycerides rise transiently after eating as dietary fat is transported in chylomicrons. A fasting sample (minimum 8-12 hours) is required to measure only endogenous triglyceride production and reflect underlying metabolic state rather than recent food intake.
How do I convert mg/dL to mmol/L?
Multiply by 0.01129. For example, 150 mg/dL is approximately 1.69 mmol/L.