DASH Diet

The DASH Diet is a well balanced way of eating. It has been scientifically proven to lower your weight, blood pressure and cholesterol. DASH stands for Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension. Over ten thousand people today are losing weight with the DASH Diet. It has been ranked the number one diet by US News and World Report. DASH is not an unhealthy, quick loss fad diet but a healthy one which includes a variety of nutritionally balanced foods and exercise. This combination brings about weight loss and lowers your blood pressure in just 14 days. Since it is such a well rounded food plan doctors and dietitians all across the country are prescribing DASH to their patients and so are many health organizations such as The American Heart Organization and The National Heart Lung and Blood Institute.

In the USDA Dietary Guidelines of 2005 the two examples of eating patterns that exemplify its Dietary Guidelines are the USDA Food Guide and the DASH Eating Plan. These two eating patterns are not meant to be weight loss plans rather they are examples of how to eat according to the Dietary Guidelines. Since the U.S. is a melting pot of different types of people The USDA Guidelines must incorporate the food preferences of many different racial and ethnic groups, vegetarians and other groups when it gives diet education, programs and materials. DASH is a flexible program which can be adapted to Americans of any culture. It can accommodate a range of food preferences and types of cooking.[a]

Dash Diet Description

Here’s how the DASH Diet works. You enter your information, on line, such as weight, height, age, gender and level of activity and DASH will calculate how much from each food group you should eat everyday to help you lose weight. The diet is rich in fruits and vegetables and nonfat or low fat dairy products and it is low in red meats, fats and sweets.
Now for the real information; Let’s say you are a 35 year old female who is 5’3” , weighs 130lbs, are moderately active and you want to lose weight. Here’s what DASH recommends for you daily; Four servings of fruit, four servings of vegetables, two servings of nonfat or low fat dairy products, six servings of grains, one and a half servings of meat, fish or poultry, two and a half servings of nuts/beans, one fat serving and a half serving of sweets.
So that you will better understand the amounts here are examples of serving sizes. A serving of fruit is a ½ cup portion which equals either 1 medium fruit, 16 grapes, or 4 oz of 100% fruit juice. A serving of vegetables also equals ½ cup which can be either 1cup of leafy vegetables, ½ cup of raw, canned or frozen veggies or 4oz of 100% vegetable juice. A serving of dairy is either 8oz of nonfat or low fat milk or yogurt or 11/2 oz of low fat or fat free cheese. A serving of grains
(should be whole grains) is a 1oz portion which can be either a 1oz slice of bread, ½ cup of cooked rice or pasta, or ½ -11/4 cup of dry cereal (depending on the type). These are just some of the examples of portions for some of the food groups.

Dash Diet Review

DASH is obviously an excellent eating plan because it was also recommended by the 2010 Dietary Guidelines for Americans. These Dietary Guidelines say that you are supposed to enjoy your food but you should eat lesser amounts. They also say that you should eat and drink more low fat or nonfat dairy products. And half or your plate should consist of fruits and vegetables. These are exactly the instructions that the DASH Diet give you. You should also be aware that the DASH eating plan not only helps you to lose weight and lower your blood pressure but it also decreases your risk of developing certain cancers, diabetes and osteoporosis. And there is evidence that the DASH eating plan is lower in sodium and higher in potassium, calcium, magnesium and fiber. So what are you waiting for? Start to become healthier and to look better immediately with DASH.