What to eat on DASH diet.

 

What to eat on DASH diet.

DASH diet have two versions, standard and lower sodium. Both of them consist of lots of whole grains, vegetables, fruits and low-fat dairy products. DASH diet also includes some fish, legumes, poultry and encourage small amount of nuts and seeds few times per week. Red meat, fat and sweets are allowed in small amounts. In addition to that, DASH diet has low saturated fat, total fat and trans fat.

Below are the recommended servings for some of each food group in DASH diet. The recommendations bellow is 2.000-calorie-a-day.

1. Grains consumption for 6 to 8 servings per day. This includes bread, rice, cereal and paste. Example of one serving include 1 slice of whole-wheat bread, 1 ounce of dry cereal or half cup of rice, cooked cereal or pasta.

2. Consumption of fruits for up to 4 to 5 servings per day. Most of fruits need little preparation to become healthy snack or meal. Similar with vegetables, fruits are packed with fiber, magnesium and potassium. Fruits are typically low-fat with coconuts as exception. As an example, one serving of food includes one medium fruit, fresh, canned or frozen fruit for 1/2 cup, or 4 ounces of juice.

3. Dairy consumption for 2 to 3 servings per day. Dairy products such as milk, yogurt and cheese are major sources of calcium, protein and vitamin D. But, keep in mind that you need to choose dairy products that are either fat-free or low-fat. Otherwise, they can be a major source of fat especially saturated fat. One serving of Dairy includes 1 cup skim of 1 percent milk, one and half ounces part-skim cheese or low fat yogurt for one cup.

4. Daily fat and oils consumption for 2 to 3 servings. Fat is beneficial to help your body absorb important vitamins and assist your body's immune system. However, too much fat in your body will increases the risk of heart disease, obesity and diabetes. Therefore, DASH diet strive for a healthy balance of fat by restricting it to less than 30 percent of daily calories from fat and focus more on the healthier and non-saturated fat. Example of this for one serving is 1 teaspoon of soft margarine, 1 tablespoon of mayonnaise or 2 tablespoons of salad dressing.

5. Sweet consumption for 5 servings or fewer per week. It is not necessary to remove sweets entirely when practicing DASH diet; you could go easy on them instead. Examples of 1 serving of sweets are 1 tablespoon of sugar, jam or jelly, half cup of sorbet, or 1 cup of lemonade. However, it is important to choose sweets which either low-fat or entirely fat free.