If you feel guilty about finishing off a pork belly meal with fried rice, the rice may be a bigger problem than the fat. Hyperlipidemia and diabetes look like different diseases, but they share the same root — a lifestyle built on carbohydrate-heavy eating and too little exercise.
According to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency's "2025 Status and Issues of Chronic Diseases," dyslipidemia has become so common that about half of South Korean adults have it. Among adults aged 30 and over, 40.5% show signs of dyslipidemia.
The prevalence of diabetes also edged up to 9.4% among adults aged 19 and over, from 9.1% a year earlier. Treatment outcomes are relatively good — eight in 10 people being treated for high cholesterol keep their total cholesterol below 200 mg/dL — but only about half of those with the condition actually receive treatment.
Doctors broadly agree that the two conditions share the same origin. Excessive carbohydrate intake rapidly raises blood triglyceride levels, leading to hyperlipidemia. Most everyday foods, such as rice, potatoes, sweet potatoes and fruit, contain carbohydrates, and among them refined sugars — such as sugar, candy, chocolate, snacks and sweetened drinks — are absorbed quickly and are cited as a leading cause of sharp spikes in triglycerides.
The problem does not stop there. Greater blood sugar volatility worsens insulin resistance and ultimately creates a path toward prediabetes and diabetes. In particular, eating quickly absorbed carbohydrates such as bread, rice cakes or rice first on an empty stomach causes blood sugar and triglycerides to surge at the same time, placing a double burden on the pancreas and fat metabolism.
Experts point out that it is a misconception to understand hyperlipidemia only as "a disease caused by eating a lot of fatty food." In actual clinical practice, they explain, excessive carbohydrates are a more common cause than fat intake. This is also why hyperlipidemia and prediabetes are frequently found together in blood tests — the same lifestyle pattern of eating refined carbohydrates first on an empty stomach and getting too little exercise affects both conditions alike.
A nutrition expert explained that while carbohydrates are an important source of energy, excess intake turns the surplus energy into triglycerides. The advice is to choose whole grains such as brown rice or oats instead of white rice, and to cut back on the habit of repeatedly snacking on bread, potatoes and sweet potatoes.
The expert also stressed that hyperlipidemia cannot be resolved by cutting fat alone, and that saturated fat, simple sugars and refined carbohydrates must all be managed together. Sugary drinks and desserts in particular are a leading cause of raising both blood sugar and triglycerides, requiring restraint, the expert added.
How to Start Managing Carbohydrates
The practical steps that experts commonly recommend can be grouped into four broad categories.
First, the eating pattern itself must change. White rice should be replaced with whole grains such as brown rice, oats or whole wheat, and the habit of starting a meal on an empty stomach with quickly absorbed carbohydrates such as bread, rice cakes or rice should be avoided. Repeatedly snacking on potatoes, sweet potatoes or bread should also be reduced.
Simple sugars such as sugar, candy, chocolate, snacks and cake should be avoided as much as possible. Sweetened drinks, fruit syrups, syrups and honey in particular are ranked as the top factors in raising both blood sugar and triglycerides.
Fiber intake should also be increased sufficiently. Fiber reduces cholesterol absorption in the intestines and promotes its excretion. It helps to cut saturated fats such as pork belly and processed meat while increasing intake of unsaturated fats such as mackerel and nuts.
Experts diagnose hyperlipidemia and prediabetes not as separate diseases but as outcomes stemming from the same lifestyle habits. Given that Korean meals center on rice, noodles and bread, the risk can appear even greater. Experts agree that "controlling carbohydrate intake is the first step in preventing hyperlipidemia and diabetes."
