A way of eating
DASH
Built and tested specifically to bring blood pressure down.
DASH — Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension — was designed for a trial rather than derived from a tradition, which is unusual and is why its effect is so cleanly measured. It emphasises fruit, vegetables, whole grains, lean protein and low-fat dairy, and goes easy on salt, saturated fat and added sugar. If blood pressure is the thing on your mind, this is the pattern built for it.
A day, roughly
Not a schedule to hit — a picture of what this pattern tends to look like, so the question “what do I eat” has an answer on a tired evening. Most of these link to the recipe.
Morning
Whole grain, fruit, and some dairy.
- · Porridge with banana and milk
- · Wholegrain cereal, berries, low-fat yoghurt
- · Wholemeal toast with peanut butter and apple
Midday
Lean protein with plenty of vegetables, lightly salted.
Evening
Fish or poultry, two vegetables, a whole grain.
Something small
Fruit, unsalted nuts, or yoghurt.
- · An apple or pear
- · Unsalted almonds
- · Yoghurt with toasted almonds and cinnamon
Leans on
- Fruit and vegetables, generously
- Whole grains
- Low-fat dairy
- Poultry, fish, beans and nuts
Goes easy on
- Salt — the single biggest lever in the trial
- Saturated fat and fatty meat
- Added sugar and sweetened drinks
This may suit you if
- · Blood pressure is something you or your doctor are watching
- · You want the pattern with the most precisely measured effect
- · You are happy to notice salt without weighing anything
What this rests on
Randomised trial · 1997
In a randomised feeding trial, the DASH pattern lowered systolic blood pressure by around 5.5 mmHg and diastolic by around 3 mmHg against a control diet, in eight weeks.
DASH — A Clinical Trial of the Effects of Dietary Patterns on Blood Pressure · New England Journal of Medicine
Randomised trial · 2001
Combining the DASH pattern with lower sodium produced larger reductions still — up to roughly 8.9 mmHg systolic at the lowest sodium level.
DASH-Sodium randomised controlled trial · New England Journal of Medicine