Table of Contents

Contents

Preface

Part One

Why We Need DASH and How It Works

Introducing DASH

Take the 14-Day DASH Diet Challenge!

Why DASH? Hypertension: The Silent Killer

A Deadly Disease That Affects Millions

What Is High Blood Pressure/Hypertension?

What Causes High Blood Pressure?

Who Is Most at Risk for Hypertension?

Understanding Blood Pressure Readings

Truth and Consequences

How High Blood Pressure Is Treated

Proving the Diet Works: How We Did It

Top-Level Study Finally Launched

DASH Study Design

The Results

The Science Behind DASH

Implications of the Diet

A "Feel-Good" Diet Too!

A Postmodern Diet

Part Two

Making the Most of Your Commitment

Optimizing the Diet: Salt Reduction Is the Answer

The DASH-Sodium Study

How Salt Influences Blood Pressure

Lowering Your Salt/Sodium Intake: Here's How

DASH Plus: Weight Loss, Exercise, and Limiting Alcohol Consumption

Bring Your Body Fat to a Healthy Level

Start an Exercise Program

Launching a Vigorous Exercise Program

Limit Your Alcohol Consumption

Want to Lose Weight? DASH Has the Answer

Fundamentals of Weight Loss

Customizing the DASH Diet for Weight Loss

The Substitution Solution

The Skinny on Fat

Nutrition Facts Panel and Food Labeling

Keeping It Off

Part Three

DASH in Action

Putting DASH into Action: How to Start Eating the DASH Way

DASH in Three Easy Moves

Preparing to DASH

Vegetables

Fruits/Fruit Juices

Dairy Foods (Milk, Cheese, and Yogurt)

Grains (Bread, Cereal, Rice, and Pasta)

Meat, Poultry, and Fish

Nuts, Seeds, and Legumes

Added Fats and Oils

Sweets

Healthy Hints for Home Cooking

DASH-Friendly Cooking Methods

Supermarket Savvy: How to Shop for DASH

Dining Out on DASH

Eating the DASH Way: Any Tom, Dick, or Harriet Can Do It

Track Your Food Habits

Make DASH Part of Your Life...for Life!

Step 1: Recognize Your Food Issues

Step 2: Believe You Will Succeed

Step 3: Time It Right

Step 4: One Step Leads You to the Next

Step 5: Develop a SMART Action Plan

Step 6: "Just Do It"

Step 7: Assess Your Progress

Step 8: Ask for Help If Things Aren't Going Well

And the Final Step: Celebrate Every Success, No Matter How Small!

Part Four

DASH Menu Plans and Recipes

Fourteen Days on the DASH Diet

Meeting Your Calorie-Intake Requirement

How the Menu Plans Break Down

Week 1: 2,000-Calorie Menus

Week 2: 2,000-Calorie Menus

Snacking on the DASH Diet

DASH Recipes

Main Dishes

Baked Catfish • Baked Macaroni and Cheese • BBQ Pork Chops • Blackened Beef with Greens and Red Potatoes • Chicken and Broccoli Bake • Chicken Fruity Stir-fry • Chicken with Rice • Dave's Cajun Catfish • Fettuccine with Chicken and Vegetables • Grilled Tuna • Hawaiian Chicken Sandwich • Mango and Black Bean Salad with Grilled Shrimp • New Orleans Red Beans and Rice • Northeast Gumbo • Snapper with Greens • Spicy Cod • Sweet-and-Sour Pork with Vegetables • Swiss Cheese Sandwich • Turkey Burger • Vegetarian Lasagna • Vegetarian Spaghetti Sauce • Vermont Roast with Brown Mustard

Soups

Gingered Butternut Squash Soup • Tomato Bisque • Tomato-Orange Soup • Tortellini and Bean Soup

Vegetable Side Dishes

Broccoli Rabe • Green Beans with Almonds • Kale with Sesame Seeds • Limas and Spinach • Molasses-Braised Collards • Sautéed Collard Greens • Stuffed Acorn Squash • Sweet-Potato Chips

Grains

Apple Cobbler • Blueberry Pancakes • Bulgur Wheat with Tomatoes • Couscous with Broccoli • Scallion Rice • Wild Rice Pilaf

Salads

Broccoli and Walnut Salad • Cherry Tomato and Scallion Salad • Coleslaw with Dates • Fresh Fruit Salad • Hot Red Potato and Spinach Salad • Soybean Salad • Spicy Carrot Salad • Three-Bean Salad • Tomato and Red Onion Salad • Tossed Salad I • Tossed Salad II

Breads

Baked Brown Bread • Banana Raisin Nut Bread • Lemon Muffins • Lighter Sweet Country Corn Bread • Quick Pumpkin Bread

Desserts

Apple Crisp • Baked Apple • Chocolate-Dipped Fruit • Crustless Pumpkin Pie • Low-Calorie Walnut Brownies • Orange-Banana Fruit Salad • Smoothie • Sweet Potato Pie • Tapioca with Mandarin Oranges • Tropical Delight • Vanilla Pudding with Banana

DASH Meal Plans

Breakfast

Lunch

Dinner

Appendix A The Science Behind DASH

The Role of Key Nutrients in Keeping Blood Pressure Healthy
How Potassium, Calcium, and Magnesium Combine to Lower Blood Pressure
Fiber Matters, Too
Appendix B A Formula to Calculate Your Daily Calorie Intake

Appendix C A Formula to Calculate Your Body Mass Index (BMI)

Appendix D Scientific Articles about the DASH Diet

Index

About the Author

Mark Jenkins is a journalist and the author of several health books, including the Sports Medicine Bible, and is a consultant to the Harvard Medical School system.

Thomas J. Moore is professor of medicine and endocrinology at Boston University School of Medicine. Dr. Moore has studied the blood pressure effects of foods and salt intake for more than two decades, and has written numerous scientific papers and books, including both The DASH Diet for Hypertension and The DASH Diet for Weight Loss. Dr. Moore lives near Boston; he enjoys biking, tennis, and golf.

Reviews

Aram V. Chobanian, M.D. Dean, Boston University Medical School The DASH diet is an exciting, new nutritional approach to the management of hypertension, and its effectiveness has been well documented by carefully controlled scientific studies. I recommend it not only for hypertensive patients but also for nutritionists, medical practitioners, and anyone interested in adopting a healthier lifestyle.

Dr. Patricia Elmer Senior Nutrition Investigator, Kaiser Permanente Center for Health Research Member, Nutrition Committee, American Heart Association Excellent! A medication-free alternative to help millions of Americans lower their high blood pressure and live healthier, longer lives.

Dr. Ronald Krauss Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, University of California, Chair, American Heart Association Council on Nutrition, Physical Activity, and Metabolism An excellent, user-friendly resource for people with high blood pressure, as well as anyone who wants to improve their heart health.

Norman K. Hollenberg, M.D., Ph.D. Professor of Medicine and Radiology, Harvard Medical School This book fills an unmet need, providing clear and simple guidelines supported by solid data obtained from outstanding studies. I have no doubt that it will work.

Shiriki K. Kumanyika, Ph.D., R.D., M.P.H. Center for Clinical Epidemiology & Biostatistics University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine This book is amazingly clear, comprehensive, and user-friendly. There is a lot of "what to do" and "how to do it." And also "why" for the consumer who wants to understand why to choose DASH over the other diets that are out there. This book will even convince the skeptics who don't believe that ordinary foods can make a big difference. There is no trick here.

Thomas Pickering, M.D. Director, Integrative and Behavioral Cardiac Health Program and Hypertension Section, Mount Sinai School of Medicine This is not just another fad diet, but one that is scientifically proven to be the best for people who are concerned about their blood pressure. The DASH studies were a major breakthrough in the prevention and treatment of hypertension, and the diet is now described in a practical and straightforward manner.