Eat Right to Control Your Blood Pressure

Format: Booklet
Institute: National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI)

If you’re one of the 65 million Americans with high blood pressure, you’ve probably heard this advice: “Watch your diet, and cut back on salt.” But how? Figuring out what to eat is not always simple.

A new publication, Your Guide to Lowering Your Blood Pressure with DASH, provides a sure-fire formula for doing so. The eating plan called DASH (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) is based on an NHLBI research study of the same name. The study found that a diet that is rich in fruits, vegetables, and low-fat or fat-free dairy products and limited in salt can lower blood pressure swiftly and significantly.

The new guide updates previous publications of the DASH eating plan and includes new information on potassium, weight loss, and physical activity. It provides a week’s worth of menus, easy-to-prepare recipes, and a food diary for recording your eating and exercise patterns. Give it a try—your heart will thank you for it!

Next Steps
Information about downloading a copy of Your Guide to Lowering Your Blood Pressure with DASH or ordering printed copies is available at www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/public/heart/hbp/dash/index.htm.