Healthy_Food_Guide_UK_-_January_2020

THE DIET IN A NUTSHELL

If you have high blood pressure, reducing it

even a little bit can improve your risk of

developing conditions such as heart disease.

DASH stands for Dietary Approaches to Stop

Hypertension. It was developed in the US

by the National Institute of Health to provide

a life-long approach to heart-healthy eating.

Clinicalresearchproves that DASH is an

effectivenutritionalapproach to preventing

andtreatinghighblood pressure, which is a

majorriskfactorforheart disease and stroke.

Inthosewithtype2 diabetes, the diet

hasalsobeenassociated with reduced

‘cardiometabolic’riskmeasurements,

includingexcessweight, a larger waist

circumferenceandhigh cholesterol levels.

The‘lowersodiumDASH diet’ reduces

sodiumto1,500mgper day (just under 4g

salt)andseemstobeeven more effective.

TheDASHdietrecommends daily or weekly

numbersofservingsacross different food

groupstoachieve2,000 calories per day,

whichcanbeadjustedto individual needs.

Italsoadviseslimitingsaturates. Clear your

cupboards,fridgeandfreezer of processed

meats,coconutandpalm oils that are high

insaturates.Sugaryfoods and drinks need

tobelimitedtokeepcalories down.

WHAT’SONTHEMENU?

■Foodsnaturallylowin saturated fats,

includingvegetables,fruits, wholegrains,

lowfatdairyproducts,fish, poultry, beans,

nutsandvegetableoils.

■Flavourreplacements for salt to help you

keeptounder6gsalta day while still enjoying

flavoursomemeals.Tryadding herbs and

spices,reduced saltstock cubes or the juice of

citrusfruits,suchaslemons, to your recipes.

The DASH diet

A diet low in salt and saturated fats can

help put blood pressure back on track

WHAT A TYPICAL DAY’S MENU PLAN

COULD LOOK LIKE

Breakfast 2 slices wholegrain bread with

20g no added salt cashew or peanut butter

and a 160g bowl of orange segments.

Snack 200g 2% fat greek yogurt with 30g

dried apple pieces.

Lunch Salad made with 100g cooked lentils,

140g avocado, 80g cucumber and

80g tomato dressed with 1tsp olive

oil and 1tbsp balsamic vinegar.

Snack 30g handful pistachio nuts

and 80g fresh mango.

Dinner 130g grilled salmon with

125g quinoa and 80g ratatouille.

Plus a fruit salad topped with

low-fat fromage frais.

To t a l 1,953kcal, 17g saturates,

1.7g salt, plus 64% of your

daily potassium

WILL THIS DIET SUIT YOU?

The DASH diet is regularly voted the best

diet to follow for general good health. If

you have any concerns that it might not

suit you, talk things through with your GP

before starting.

G O E AT

Forrecipesto

helpimprove

blood

pressure

health,see

p56–p58

HEALTH ISSUE HIGH BLOOD PRESSURE

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