What is the DASH Diet and Why Is It a Top Choice among Experts?

What is the DASH Diet?

The DASH diet is one of the top diets recommended for overall health and heart disease prevention. DASH stands for Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension. The diet is often prescribed by doctors to help treat high blood pressure, but that's not the only benefit.

Since its introduction in 1997, studies have shown that the DASH diet helps lower the risk of heart disease, kidney disease, and type 2 diabetes, improves cholesterol levels, and helps with weight loss. The DASH diet is a flexible eating plan that sets daily and weekly nutritional goals for specific food groups.

The plan emphasizes fruits, vegetables, and whole grains, along with fat-free and low-fat dairy products, fish, poultry, beans, nuts, and vegetable oils. It recommends limiting fatty meats, full-fat dairy, tropical oils, sugar-sweetened beverages, and sweets. Choosing foods low in saturated and trans fats, lower in sodium, and rich in potassium, calcium, magnesium, fiber, and protein is also key to success with the DASH diet.

While food quantities may vary based on body size, a 2,000-calorie-a-day diet would include the following servings:

Food Group Daily Servings

• Grains 6-8

• Meats, Poultry, Fish 6 ounces or less

• Vegetables 4-5

• Fruits 4-5

• Low-fat/Fat-free Dairy 2-3

Food Group Daily Servings

• Fats and Oils 2-3

• Sodium 2,300 mg

• Nuts, Seeds, Dry Beans 4-5 per week

• Sweets 5 or fewer per week