Healthy Diet

What is the DASH Diet?

The DASH diet is a heart healthy way of eating that has been proven to help lower your blood pressure and decrease risks of heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes, and kidney disease. This heart healthy diet plan encourages eating whole grains, vegetables, fruits, low-fat dairy, beans, poultry, and fish. These foods are good sources of fiber, potassium, protein, magnesium, and calcium. Following the DASH Diet with less than 1,500 mg of salt per day may help lower your blood pressure even more, especially if it is high.

Health Benefits of a DASH Diet

Some ways the DASH diet can help you are:

• Lowering blood pressure
• Improved cholesterol levels
• Lowers your chance of getting kidney disease
• It lowers your chance of getting serious diseases like diabetes, heart failure, heart disease, and stroke
• May improve insulin resistance and sensitivity
• May help with weight loss
• It is good for your stomach/gut and digestion

Why is the DASH diet important for African Americans/Blacks?

The DASH diet is helpful for people with high blood pressure. The DASH diet lowers the risk of heart disease among Black adults with more hypertension than other racial or ethnic groups. Anyone with hypertension should focus on eating more potassium-rich foods like fruits and veggies, and less sodium (salt).

How can My Plate help me manage my diet?

MyPlate shows you a picture of what a healthy plate of food looks like. It helps you know how much of each food group to eat. Changing what you eat to be healthier can be difficult. MyPlate is a good place to start learning. One recommendation is to fill half your plate with fruits and veggies. MyPlate also encourages you to eat whole grains and limit fats. MyPlate is a useful tool to help you make better food choices.

How does Sodium (Salt) affect the body?

Your body needs some salt to make sure your nerves and muscles are working correctly. However, too much salt can be bad for you. Eating more than 2,300 mg a day can increase the risk of high blood pressure, kidney problems, heart disease, and strokes. Food packages have labels that tell you how much salt (sodium) is in your foods. It is important to review the tables so that you can eat the correct amount of salt.

Check the Package for Nutrient Claims

You can look at packages to see quickly if things have less salt. Here are some common claims and what they mean:

When it says…	What it means
Salt/Sodium-Free	Less than 5 mg of sodium per serving.
Very Low Sodium	35 mg of sodium or less per serving.
Low Sodium	140 mg of sodium or less per serving.
Reduced Sodium	At least 25% less sodium than the regular product.
Light in Sodium or Lightly Salted	At least 50% less sodium than the regular product.
No-Salt-Added or Unsalted	No salt is added during processing – but these products may not be salt/sodium-free unless stated.

Salt is used to make food taste good. As you transition to eating less salt, you can use other spices as an alternative Using spices instead of salt keeps food flavorful without the salt. Here are some common spices and what foods they are used in:

Tips for Using Herbs and Spices

Herbs and Spices	Flavor Profile	Use In
Basil	Sweet, pungent, slightly spicy	Soups and salads, vegetables, fish, and meats
Cinnamon	Sweet, woody, slightly citrusy	Soups, vegetables, breads, and snacks
Chili Powder	Warm, earthy, mild to moderate spiciness, slightly smoky	Soups, salads, vegetables, and fish
Cloves	Strong, pungent, sweet, bitter	Soups, salads, and vegetables
Dill Weed & Dill Seed	Fresh, citrus-like, grassy undertone	Fish, soups, salads, and vegetables
Ginger	Spicy, peppery, warm/hot	Soups, salads, vegetables, and meats
Marjoram	Sweet, herby, piney, earthy	Soups, salads, vegetables, beef, fish, and chicken
Nutmeg	Nutty, earthy, slightly sweet	Vegetables, meats, and snacks
Oregano	Earthy/musty, green, hay and minty notes	Soups, salads, vegetables, meats, and snacks
Paprika	Mild, sweet, vegetable like, some smoked for more flavor	Soups, sauces, vegetables, fish, and meats
Parsley	Clean and peppery, slightly earthy	Salads, vegetables, fish, and meats
Rosemary	Piney, resinous, astringent, peppery, lemony, and woodsy	Salads, vegetables, fish, and meats
Sage	Woodsy hints of pine, mint, and even eucalyptus	Soups, salads, vegetables, meats, and chicken
Thyme	Earthy, minty, flowery, light lemon flavor	Salads, vegetables, fish, and chicken

Why is Potassium important?

Eating foods with potassium helps lower high blood pressure. Adults should aim for at least 4,700 mg of potassium each day according to The Food and Drug Administration. Good sources are veggies, fruits, whole grains, dried beans and peas, nuts, fish, and dairy.

Selected Food Sources of Potassium

Food	Amount/serving (mg)
Apricots, dried, ½ cup	1,101
Lentils, cooked, 1 cup	731
Potato, baked, 1 med	610
Banana, 1 med	422
Chicken breast, 3 oz	332
Soymilk, 1 cup	287
Broccoli, cooked, ½ cup	229
Cantaloupe, cubed, ½ cup	214
Milk, 1%, 1 cup	366
Spinach, raw, 2 cups	334
Apple with skin, 1 med	195
Rice, brown, cooked, 1 cup	154

It’s important to talk to your doctor about high blood pressure. Here are some questions you can ask:

• Do you think I should talk to a dietitian? A dietitian can help me learn what foods are good and bad for my blood pressure.
• Are there certain foods I should eat more or less of?
• What kind of diet do you think would help my blood pressure?

References

U.S. Dept. of Health and Human Services, National Institutes of Health, National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute. (2003, May). Your guide to lowering blood pressure.
https://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/files/docs/public/heart/new_dash.pdf

U.S. Food & Drug Administration. (2022, February, 25). Sodium in your diet: Use the nutrition facts label and reduce your intake. https://www.fda.gov/food/nutrition-education-resources-materials/sodium-your-diet

Source: In Brief: Your Guide to Lowering Your Blood Pressure with DASH. Content last reviewed August 2018. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, Rockville, MD.
https://www.ahrq.gov/evidencenow/heart-health/blood-pressure/dash-brief.html

Effects of Diet on 10-Year Atherosclerotic Cardiovascular Disease Risk (from the DASH Trial) – ScienceDirect

Effects of Sodium Reduction and the DASH Diet in Relation to Baseline Blood Pressure

Combination Low-Salt and Heart-Healthy “Dash” Diet as Effective as Drugs for Some Adults With High Blood Pressure – 11/22/2017