Eat the DASH Diet For a Healthy Heart

Follow the Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension Dietary Guidelines to Prevent Heart Failure

May 18, 2009 Sue Cartledge

It's possible to lower high blood pressure and LDL cholesterol levels by following the DASH diet consistently, resulting in a greatly reduced risk of heart failure.

The Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) guidelines, developed to help people lower their blood pressure, advise reducing consumption of salt, sugar and fat, and eating more fruits, vegetables and grains and low fat dairy products.

DASH Guidelines Help Women Reduce Heart Risks

Women over 45 are at almost as great a risk of heart disease and heart failure as men, and heart failure is the number one killer of older women in Australia, Canada and the US.

However, as heart problems are partly diet-related, Australian dietitian Tara Diversi suggests DASH is something that every woman should follow, no matter what age.

“Don’t wait until you are 45,” she advises.

“For women over 45, heart disease is the biggest killer, and eating according to the DASH diet can help reduce this risk. Along with heart disease, the diet also helps with lowering blood pressure (for which it was originally developed), lowering ‘bad’ LDL cholesterol and may help with other chronic diseases and weight control.”

DASH Diet Not Just For Women

Women are not the only people who should modify their diet according to DASH guidelines. This healthy diet is great for men and children.

“Not only is it good for women, but it’s also healthy for the whole family including the kids,” Diversi says.

She says adapting the family meals to the guidelines is very easy.

10 Tips for Following the DASH Diet

1. Skip processed food as much as possible Sodium (salt) is very high in many processed foods including some foods that you wouldn’t necessarily expect – like breakfast cereals.
2. Go easy on the salt. Even if you don’t add salt to your meals at the table, the real dangers are in processed foods and additives like sauces (eg., asian sauces), flavour enhancers (eg., stock) or simply adding salt to meals while cooking.
3. Read labels. Remember, though, that while it is important to know how to read a food label, the healthiest foods of all have no label at all!
4. Fruit is the original convenience food Include as snacks for the benefits of fibre, magnesium and potassium.
5. Vegetables or salads are a must to every meal At least twice a day is needed to get your serves so regardless of what or where you are eating, add some veggies. Salad on a sandwich, grated vegetables in pasta sauces, extra vegetables or salad on the side or mixed meals.
6. Fat is not our enemy: good fats like those found in nuts, avocado, plant seed oils (like Canola) and spreads made from these should be included in our diet.
7. Nuts are nutritious: eat a serving (about 30g or just less than a ¼ of a cup) of nuts 4 – 5 times a week. Avoid salted nuts, though.
8. Swap your white breads, pastas and rice for multigrain, rye, brown or wholemeal and include other wholegrains like oats and legumes or lentils
9. Add in low fat dairy: have low fat milk on cereal and snack on tubs of low fat yoghurt. Substitute low fat evaporated milk for cream in recipes.
10. See an expert in nutrition: an Accredited Practising Dietitian or nutritionist if you need help to tailor the DASH diet to your lifestyle.

See also: DASH Diet Helps Women’s Heart Health

Cardio-protective Power of Grapes

Ways to Eat More Fruit and Veg

The copyright of the article Eat the DASH Diet For a Healthy Heart in Nutrition is owned by Sue Cartledge. Permission to republish Eat the DASH Diet For a Healthy Heart in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.

Vegetables Are Important in the DASH Diet

Eat Salads or Vegetables at Every Meal

Read Labels to Avoid Excess Salt