THE DASH DIET FOR BEGINNERS A Quick Start Guide to Fast Natural Weight Loss, Lower Blood Pressure and Better Health with the DASH Diet, Including a 7-Day Meal Plan Gina Crawford Your Free Gift! As a special THANK YOU for downloading this book I’ve created an exclusive report on the amazing benefits of EATING RAW that I believe will revitalize your health FAST! If you’re tired of having no energy, being overweight and frustrated you’re likely eating a SAD diet (Standard American Diet) that depletes your energy, makes you fat and messes with your emotions. My exclusive report Raw Food – The Top 10 Ways that Eating Raw can Transform Your Health and Make You Feel Amazing will help fix all that! This FREE 12 page report reveals: The stunning facts about eating raw and why it is important for great health Why your body might be dangerously acidic and how to correct that Why cooked food is damaging your health…and much more... Download this FREE report by clicking here To receive my kindle books absolutely FREE as they’re released click here © Copyright All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other non-commercial uses permitted by copyright law. For permission, direct requests to the publisher. Distribution of this book without the prior permission of the author is illegal and therefore punishable by law. Table of Contents Introduction Chapter 1 - What is the DASH Diet? Chapter 2 -Why was the DASH Diet Created? Chapter 3 - Characteristics of the DASH Diet Chapter 4 - DASH Diet Food Groups Chapter 5 - Portion Control and Serving Sizes Chapter 6 - DASH Diet Food List Chapter 7 - The DASH Diet and Weight Loss Chapter 8 - Tips to Make the Switch to DASH Diet Eating Chapter 9 - Tips to Lower Your Sodium Intake Chapter 10 - DASH Diet Seven-Day Meal Plan Chapter 11 - DASH Diet 30 Minute Recipes Raspberry Muffins Buckwheat Pancakes Sun-Dried Tomato Basil Pizza Chicken in White Wine and Mushroom Sauce Balsamic Chicken Salad with Pineapple Roasted Salmon with Chives and Tarragon Asian-Style Vegetable Salad Simple Mango Salad Tomato Basil Bruschetta Fruit Kebabs with Lemony Lime Dip Artichoke Dip Peach Honey Spread Check out my other books Conclusion Introduction Thank you for downloading my book The DASH Diet for Beginners Quick Start Guide to Fast Natural Weight Loss, Lower Blood Pressure and Better Health, Including DASH Diet Recipes and a 7-Day Meal Plan. The DASH diet is a lifelong well-balanced approach to healthy eating promoted by the National Institutes of Health that is based on nutrient-rich whole foods. This book will teach you exactly how to reach and maintain a healthy weight while lowering blood pressure and cholesterol. U.S News and World Report chose the DASH diet as the best overall diet, the healthiest diet and the best diet for diabetes for four years in a row. It is estimated that hypertension or high blood pressure affects over one billion people worldwide. Not only is high blood pressure the leading cause of death, it also increases the risk of stroke and heart disease. The DASH diet seeks to reduce sodium in your diet and increase your consumption of calcium, magnesium, potassium and fiber by eating a wide selection of whole foods that lower blood pressure. Eating vegetables, fruits, whole grains, fish, lean meats, low fat dairy and healthy fats is all part of the DASH diet healthy eating plan. The DASH diet is endorsed by the American Heart Association and is scientifically proven to lower blood pressure and cholesterol. Research has also shown that the DASH diet is extremely effective in promoting weight loss which has popularized it as a weight loss diet. In a step-by-step way The DASH Diet for Beginners Quick Start Guide is going to teach you everything you need to know about how to successfully apply the DASH diet to your life! Chapter 1 - What is the DASH Diet? “Let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food” Hippocrates The DASH diet is a well-balanced, lifelong approach to healthy eating that was discovered in research funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to determine the role of dietary eating patterns on blood pressure. Over the years a number of studies have proven that the DASH diet is not only effective for lowering blood pressure through diet but it is also effective in reducing the risk of cardiovascular disease, several types of cancers, stroke, heart disease, kidney stones, kidney disease, diabetes, heart failure and many other diseases. The DASH diet has also been shown to promote weight loss and improve overall health. The Dash diet is recommended by: The Mayo Clinic That American Heart Association The American College of Cardiology The Dietary Guidelines for Americans US guidelines for the treatment of hypertension The National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute (a part of the National Institutes of Health [NIH] of the US Department of Health & Human Services) The best overall diet In January 2014 US News and World Report selected the DASH diet as the best overall diet, the healthiest diet and the best diet for diabetes for four years in a row. The DASH diet was chosen by a distinguished panel of doctors for its healthy balance of food groups, its ability to improve health and its proven track record of successfully working time and time again. Chapter 2 -Why was the Dash Diet Created? DASH stands for Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension. Hypertension or high blood pressure has been on the rise in the US for the past 50 years. The continued increase of hypertension led the National Institutes of Health to propose funding for research that would study the impact of dietary patterns on blood pressure. In 1992, the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute worked closely with five prestigious medical research centers in the US to design and carry out the largest and most detailed study ever conducted called “The DASH study.” The DASH study was uniquely based on foods that the average person could buy at a local grocery store thus making it easy for anyone to implement. The DASH study The first DASH study began in 1993 and ended in July 1997. The study compared two experimental diets with one control diet. Each of the 459 screened participants were randomly selected to participate in one of three groups. They were instructed to follow the dietary pattern of that group for eight weeks in which time their blood pressure would be regularly checked. The two experimental groups included: Experimental diet group 1 – Fruits and vegetables diet Other than a high consumption of fruits and vegetables this group was to eat the typical American diet with fewer sweets and snacks. Their fiber content was high and their magnesium and potassium levels were similar to 75% of people in the US. Experimental diet group 2 – The DASH diet This group was to consume a high intake of fruits, vegetables and low-fat dairy. Fat content was low and protein and fiber levels were high. This diet was rich in magnesium, potassium, calcium, fish, poultry, whole grains and nuts. The consumption of red meats, sweets and sweetened drinks was low. (This diet intentionally included foods that would reduce blood pressure. It also contained a lot of antioxidant rich foods). Control group – The Control diet This group was to consume food that was typical of the American diet - low in potassium, calcium, fiber and magnesium and high in protein and fat. The results of the DASH study The results of the DASH study proved that dietary patterns do affect people with moderate to severe hypertension. The “fruits and vegetables” group experienced lower blood pressure but their decrease was not as significant as the DASH group. The participants in the DASH group that did not have hypertension experienced a decrease in blood pressure as well. The study also showed that people with hypertension in the DASH diet group experienced a decrease in their blood pressure within only two weeks of starting the DASH diet. The DASH sodium study The second DASH study called “The DASH sodium study” was undertaken following “The DASH study” to see whether the DASH diet could lower blood pressure even more effectively if it were low in salt. The two main objectives of the “The DASH sodium study” were: 1. To study the effects of reduced sodium levels on the DASH diet 2. To study the effects of the DASH diet at three different sodium levels The DASH sodium study was a large scale study that ran from 1997 to 1999. It involved 412 adult participants with stage 1 hypertension or prehypertension. There were two groups involved, the DASH diet group and the typical American diet group (the control diet group). Each group was given a 30 day diet that included three different sodium levels: 3000 mg, 2400 mg and 1500 mg a day. Each diet was preceded by two weeks of high sodium control diet eating followed by 30 days of eating an assigned diet that randomized the sodium levels. The results of the DASH sodium study Both the DASH diet and the control diet were successful at lowering blood pressure at the lower salt levels but the biggest decrease in blood pressure was