The Complete Beginner’s Guide to the DASH Diet

High blood pressure affects more than 1 billion people worldwide and this number is growing.
In fact, the number of people with high blood pressure has doubled in the last 40 years, a serious health problem, because high blood pressure is associated with an increased risk of conditions such as heart disease, kidney failure, and stroke.

Since the diet is thought to play an important role in the development of high blood pressure, scientists and legislators have developed specific dietary strategies to help reduce it.
This article examines the Dash Diet, which was designed to fight high blood pressure and reduce the risk of heart disease.

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What is the Dash Diet?

Dietary approaches to stop high blood pressure, or dash, are highly recommended diets for people who want to prevent or treat high blood pressure, known as high blood pressure and reduce the risk of heart disease.

The Dash Diet focuses on fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and fatty meats.
Researchers have noted that plant-based diets such as those followed by vegetarians and non-vegetarians rarely cause high blood pressure.

This is why the Dash Diet emphasizes fruits and vegetables while containing some fatty protein sources such as chicken, fish, and beans. The diet is low in red meat, salt, added sugars, and fats.

Scientists believe that one of the main reasons people with high blood pressure can benefit from this diet is that it reduces their salt intake.

The regular DASH diet program offers no more than 1 teaspoon (2,300 mg) of sodium per day, which is consistent with most national guidelines.

The low-salt version suggests keeping more than 3/4 teaspoon (1,500 mg) of sodium per day.

Summary

The Dash Diet was designed to reduce high blood pressure. Although it is rich in fruits, vegetables, and fatty proteins, it limits red meat, salt, added sugar, and fat.

Potential benefits

In addition to lowering blood pressure, the Dash Diet offers many potential benefits, including weight loss and cancer risk reduction.

But since Dash was initially designed to lower blood pressure, you should not expect it to help you lose weight on your own. Weight loss will be followed by fatigue and constant tiredness.

Diet affects your body in many ways.

Lowers blood pressure

Blood pressure is a measure of blood when it is applied to blood vessels and organs. It is calculated in two numbers:

Systolic pressure: The pressure in the blood vessels when the heartbeats.

Diastolic pressure: There is pressure in your blood vessels to dilate during rest.

Normal blood pressure for adults is systolic pressure below 120 mmHg and a diastolic pressure below 80 mmHg. It is usually written with systolic blood pressure above diastolic pressure: 120/80.
People with a blood pressure of 140/90 are considered to have high blood pressure.

Interestingly, the Dash Diet lowers blood pressure in both healthy people and those with high blood pressure.

In studies, people who followed the Dash Diet have experienced lower blood pressure, even though they have not yet lost weight or restricted salt intake.

However, when sodium intake was banned, the dash diet further lowered blood pressure. In fact, the greatest reduction in blood pressure has been observed in those who have taken the least amount of salt.
These results from the low-salt DASH diet were already most impressive among people with high blood pressure, reducing systolic blood pressure by an average of 12 mmHg and diastolic blood pressure by 5 mmHg.

For people with normal blood pressure, it lowers systolic blood pressure by 4 mmHg and diastolic blood pressure by 2 mmHg.

This is in line with other studies that have shown that limiting salt intake can lower blood pressure, especially in the case of high blood pressure.

Keep in mind that lowering blood pressure does not always translate into a reduced risk of heart disease.

It can help you lose weight

Whether you lose weight or not, you have the experience of low blood pressure in the DAS diet
However, if you already have high blood pressure, you are probably advised to lose weight.
This is because the more you weigh, the more likely you are to have high blood pressure.
Additionally, losing weight has been shown to lower blood pressure.

Some research suggests that people can lose weight on a fast diet.

However, those who lost weight on a fast diet had a controlled calorie deficit, which meant they were told to eat fewer calories than they expended.

Since the DASH diet offers a lot of sugary and high-fat foods, people will find that they automatically reduce their calorie intake and lose weight. Others may have to consciously limit your acceptance.

Either way, if you want to lose weight on a fast diet, you must continue with a calorie-reducing diet.

Other possible health benefits

Dash can affect other areas of health as well. Foods:

Reduces the risk of cancer: A recent review indicated that people who followed the Dash diet had a lower risk of some cancers, including colorectal and breast (21 reliable sources).

Reduces the risk of metabolic syndrome: Some studies have shown that the fast diet reduces the risk of metabolic syndrome by up to 81%.

Reduces the risk of diabetes: Diet has been linked to a lower risk of type 2 diabetes. Some studies show that it can also improve insulin resistance.

Reduces risk of heart disease: In a recent review among women, following a script-like diet, was associated with a 20% lower risk of heart disease and 29% lower risk of stroke.

Many of these protective effects are responsible for the high content of fruits and vegetables in the diet. In general, eating more fruits and vegetables can help reduce your risk of disease.

Summary

Dash lowers blood pressure, especially if its level improves, and can lead to weight loss. It can lower your risk of diabetes, heart disease, metabolic syndrome, and some cancers.

Does it work for everyone?

Although studies on the Dash Diet have determined that the greatest reduction in blood pressure occurred among low-salt drinkers, the health benefits and lifetime salt restriction are not explicitly reduced.

For people with high blood pressure, reducing salt intake significantly affects blood pressure. However, for people with normal blood pressure, the effect of reducing salt intake is much less.
The theory that some people are salt sensitive, meaning that salt has a greater effect on blood pressure, can be partially explained.

Summary

If your salt intake is high, reducing it can offer great health benefits. Extensive salt limitations, as suggested in the Dash Diet, can only be beneficial for people who are sensitive to salt or have high blood pressure.

Limiting too much salt is not good for you

Eating too little salt has been linked to health problems such as the risk of heart disease, insulin resistance, and fluid retention.

The low-salt version of the Dash Diet recommends that people consume no more than 3/4 teaspoon (1,500 mg) of sodium per day.

However, it is not yet clear if there is any benefit to taking this low-salt diet, even in people with high blood pressure.

In fact, a recent review found no link between salt intake and the risk of dying from heart disease, even though reducing salt intake leads to a slight reduction in blood pressure.

However, because most people eat too much salt, it may be beneficial to reduce your salt intake from 2 to 2.5 teaspoons (10 to 12 grams) a day to 1 to 2.25 teaspoons (5 to grams) up to date.

This goal can be easily achieved by reducing the amount of highly processed foods in your diet and eating primarily whole foods.

Summary

While reducing the amount of salt in processed foods is good for most people, eating too little salt can be harmful.

What to eat on the diet

The DASH diet does not include specific foods to eat.
Instead, it recommends specific servings from different food groups.

The number of servings you can eat depends on the number of calories you consume. Below is an example of food servings based on a 2000 calorie diet.

Whole grains: 6 to 8 servings a day
Some examples of whole grains are whole grain or whole-grain bread, whole grains for breakfast, brown rice, bulgur, quinoa, and oatmeal.
Examples of a serving include:
1 slice of whole-wheat bread
1 ounce (28 grams) dry whole-grain cereal
1/2 cup (95 grams) of cooked rice, pasta, or cereal
Vegetables: 4 to 5 servings per day

All vegetables are allowed on the DASH diet.

Examples of a serving include:
1 cup (about 30 grams) of raw leafy green vegetables like spinach or kale
1/2 cup (about 45 grams) of sliced ​​vegetables, raw or cooked, such as broccoli, carrots, zucchini, or tomatoes
Fruits: 4 to 5 servings a day
If you follow the DASH approach, you will eat a lot of fruit. Examples of fruits you can eat include apples, pears, peaches, berries, and tropical fruits like pineapple and mango.

Examples of a serving include:

1 medium apple
1/4 cup (50 grams) dried apricots
1/2 cup (30 grams) fresh, frozen, or canned peaches
Dairy products: 2 to 3 servings a day
Dairy products on the DASH diet should be low in fat. Examples include skim milk and low-fat cheese and yogurt.

Examples of a serving include:
1 cup (240 ml) skim milk
1 cup (285 grams) low-fat yogurt
1.5 ounces (45 grams) low-fat cheese
Lean chicken, meat, and fish: 6 or fewer servings per day
Choose lean cuts of meat and try to eat a serving of red meat only occasionally, no more than once or twice a week.
Examples of a serving include:
1 ounce (28 grams) of cooked meat, chicken, or fish
1 egg
Nuts, seeds, and legumes: 4 to 5 servings per week
These include almonds, peanuts, hazelnuts, walnuts, sunflower seeds, flax seeds, beans, lentils, and split peas.
Examples of a serving include:
1/3 cup (50 grams) walnuts
2 tablespoons (40 grams) of nut butter
2 tablespoons (16 grams) of seeds
1/2 cup (40 grams) of cooked legumes
Fats and oils: 2 to 3 servings a day

The DASH diet recommends vegetable oils over other oils. These include margarine and oils like canola, corn, olive, or safflower. She also recommends low-fat mayonnaise and light salad dressing.

Examples of a serving include:
1 teaspoon (4.5 grams) soft margarine
1 teaspoon (5 ml) vegetable oil
1 tablespoon (15 grams) mayonnaise
2 tablespoons (30 ml) salad dressing
Sweets and added sugars: 5 or fewer servings per week

Added sugars are kept to a minimum on the DASH diet, so limit your intake of sweets, sodas, and table sugar. The DASH diet also restricts unrefined sugars and alternative sources of sugar, such as agave nectar.

Examples of a serving include:

1 tablespoon (12.5 grams) sugar
1 tablespoon (20 grams) gelatin or jam
1 cup (240 ml) lemonade

SUMMARY

The DASH diet does not include specific foods to eat. Instead, it is a dietary pattern focused on portions of food groups.