Many Americans—77.9 million, to be precise—have high blood pressure. That’s roughly one in three people. Also known as hypertension, this disease can lead to serious complications. For that reasons, doctors recommend the DASH Diet to reduce blood pressure and provide other health benefits.
How the DASH Diet Works
Unlike many easting programs, the DASH Diet is not short-term. It’s more of a lifestyle change that improves your health and wellness. This diet also has no food or calorie restrictions.
You use different food groups to build meals while limiting your sodium intake to 1,500–2,300 milligrams per day. Dietitians also recommend reducing your overall fat intake. They advise users of this diet to eat ample fruits, veggies, poultry, whole grains, legumes, and dairy products with low or no fat.
Determine your current calorie intake to calculate the number of servings you should consume for each food group. Your gender, age, and activity level determine your ideal calorie intake. Women should consume 1,600–2,400 calories daily whereas men should consume 2,000–3,100 calories.
With the DASH Diet, you don’t need to worry about counting calories. Just keep in mind that the number of servings per food group increase with your daily consumption of calories. if you’re concerned about overeating, use HCG diet drops to reduce your hunger.
In addition to your diet, the DASH Diet also requires certain lifestyle changes to prevent or mitigate hypertension. These lifestyle requirements include:
- Maintaining a healthy weight
- Being physically active
- Managing your stress
- Limiting your alcohol consumption
- Getting adequate sleep
- Avoiding/quitting smoking
People who use the DASH Diet enjoy many health benefits and research continues to uncover even more. In addition to lowering high blood pressure, this diet diminishes risk of heart disease and helps with management of diabetes.
This diet plan is not without a few downsides, though. Most notably, sticking to it can be hard. After all, the diet demands a overhaul of your diet and other major aspects of your lifestyle. Thankfully, numerous strategies are available for helping you adhere to the DASH Diet. For example, you can use HCG drops to help you avoid overeating by diminishing your hunger.
A Final Word
The DASH Diet has the blessing of reputable health institutions and is backed by a vast and concrete body of research. That said, remember that no diet produces identical results in everyone. Learn the diet’s benefits/downsides, food recommendations, and lifestyle requirements to know if it’s the best for you. To be sure, consult your doctor.