Q: My doctor recommended the Dash diet for me. Can you give me some information about it?

A:The Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension or abbreviated as the DASH diet was designed to test the effects of dietary patterns on blood pressure.  Rather than using supplements to study single nutrients, the study used whole foods.  A diet rich in fruits, vegetables, low fat or nonfat dairy foods, low in sodium, with reduced saturated fat, trans fat and total fat can lower blood pressure.  The diet plan retained the blood pressure benefits of a vegetarian diet and Mediterranean diet, but it included enough meat, dairy, and healthy fats to make it acceptable to the general population. Find out more about the DASH diet.

The new food pyramid is located at www.mypyramid.gov . The new food pyramid is based on the DASH diet.  Located in the right hand corner of this website is a rectangle for personal data entry.  By entering age, gender, and activity level, the website will calculate a personal calorie level.  It will also provide a personal DASH diet plan.  This plan indicates the number of servings from each food group for you.  A daily food record is also available.  The food record will help to stay focused on following the plan each day.

The DASH diet along with exercise and weight management is a health-promoting plan.  Please feel free to contact our website with questions or concerns.