There are many people who our following DASH diet recipes in hopes of lowering their blood pressure, but the diet doesn’t just lower blood pressure. The American Heart Association recommends it for those who have cardiovascular problems or high blood pressure and are looking to eat a heart healthy diet. The good news is like most heart friendly diets it can also lead to weight loss.

The word DASH stands for Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension and the diet has been proven to lower blood pressure in as little as 14 days. The diet provides guidelines on how many servings from each food group should be eaten daily. To increase heart healthy minerals like, calcium, magnesium and potassium more servings of vegetables are eaten daily. When most people eat less meat and more vegetables, while cutting out junk food they end up reducing their calorie intake. Of course reducing daily calorie intake can lead to weight loss. The diet also stresses reduced sodium and for this reason processed foods should be limited, whole grains and other high fiber foods are encouraged.

Ironically this diet is endorsed by the Mayo Clinic, not the fad 3 day grapefruit diet which often wrongly carries the name of the Mayo Clinic in it. Anyone Looking for DASH diet recipes should get the book, The Dash Diet Action Plan by Marla Heller. The book not only has recipes but a complete 28 day meal plan and gives guidance on how to adjust calorie intake for more weight loss. It also contains more helpful tips on lowering your blood pressure by making positive changes to ones lifestyle.

The DASH diet is a healthy common sense approach to nutrition. It is easy to follow and though it does restrict or limit certain foods, you won’t be left feeling hungry. The diet isn’t just for those who are looking to eat heart healthy diets. Some of the recommendations like eating less processed foods can and should be part of any diet plan.

Author: Steve K. Smith

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