 [ Symptoms ] why could my healthy athletic 17 yr old grandson have lost almost 10 pounds in a month  his appetite has decreased he used to be hungry about every two hours after eating like a normal teenager   a lot he is playing varsity football and has been experiencing what appears to be acid reflux [ Disease ] none of the major health organizations emphasize good or bad triglycerides    the study you found was from 2002 and i have found nothing more recent to support it the key is to think of heart disease risk like a puzzle with many different pieces risk factors include high triglycerides high total cholesterol high ldl bad cholesterol and low hdl good cholesterol high blood pressure hyperglycemia and abdominal fat someone with metabolic syndrome has a cluster of all these risk factors instead of just one or two putting them at even higher risk for more on how to lower triglycerides see this article and for more on optimal blood lipid levels see this one good luck