Maintain Healthy Blood Pressure the DASH Way

High blood pressure is the silent killer and a leading cause of heart disease. The DASH diet is a clinically proven way to maintain healthy blood pressure and reduce your risk of an early death. More of a dietary choice than a weight loss program, the DASH diet (Dietary Approach to Stopping Hypertension) successfully maintains healthy blood pressure and eliminates the need for toxic prescription drugs.

Clinical Studies Support the DASH Diet

The results from several clinical studies clearly support the DASH diet as a safe and effective way to prevent and treat high blood pressure. The economic impact alone from this simple dietary approach is astounding. High blood pressure costs the United States billions of dollars. One health economic study concluded that it could save billions of dollars by preventing high blood pressure.

Grouping the results from population studies investigating the DASH diet, the following can be concluded:

1. The dietary approach can reduce the systolic pressure (the top number) by 12-14 points.
2. The dietary approach can reduce the diastolic pressure (the bottom number) by 6-8 points.
3. The dietary approach could help millions of people maintain healthy blood pressure without drugs.

The DASH diet, supported by the American Medical Association, stands for the Dietary Approach to Stopping Hypertension. By choosing the right foods and supplementing with the right nutrients, you can maintain healthy blood pressure and help prevent heart disease.

Research identified the following nutrients that make up the DASH diet approach:

1. Increased Calcium
2. Increased Magnesium
3. Increased Potassium

Additionally, it keeps salt intake to less than 2.5 grams per day. By simply increasing your daily intake of calcium, magnesium, and potassium, while reducing salt intake, you can maintain healthy blood pressure.

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