David Baxter PhD
Late Founder
The DASH diet ? A healthy diet on a budget
By Jennifer Nelson, M.S., R.D. and Katherine Zeratsky, R.D., Mayo Clinic
April 1, 2009
When I think about how to eat a healthy diet but stay on a budget, the DASH diet comes to mind. DASH stands for Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension. It's a well researched diet that has proven benefits for lowering blood pressure. We discussed this in a previous blog and one of our readers asked, "Isn't it just a healthy diet?" Well, yes, it is.
The DASH diet ? like any healthy diet ? helps you reduce the amount of total fat, saturated fat and cholesterol by eating a diet rich in fruits, vegetables, low-fat dairy and fiber-packed beans and whole grains. And this healthy diet doesn't have to break your budget.
The DASH diet promotes fruits and vegetables, beans, nuts and seeds. All of which can be found inexpensively. Some tips for adding more dash to your diet:
By Jennifer Nelson, M.S., R.D. and Katherine Zeratsky, R.D., Mayo Clinic
April 1, 2009
When I think about how to eat a healthy diet but stay on a budget, the DASH diet comes to mind. DASH stands for Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension. It's a well researched diet that has proven benefits for lowering blood pressure. We discussed this in a previous blog and one of our readers asked, "Isn't it just a healthy diet?" Well, yes, it is.
The DASH diet ? like any healthy diet ? helps you reduce the amount of total fat, saturated fat and cholesterol by eating a diet rich in fruits, vegetables, low-fat dairy and fiber-packed beans and whole grains. And this healthy diet doesn't have to break your budget.
The DASH diet promotes fruits and vegetables, beans, nuts and seeds. All of which can be found inexpensively. Some tips for adding more dash to your diet:
- Add frozen vegetables to classic casseroles. An easy way to add another serving to your goal of 4-5 servings a day.
- Add beans to salads, soups and stews.
- Make a stir fry from combination of fresh, frozen and canned (drained and rinsed or low sodium varieties) vegetables. Serve over brown rice.
- If fresh fruits are out of season and beyond your budget, buy frozen or canned. Just make sure canned fruit is in its own juice.
- Combine canned or frozen fruit with yogurt for a snack or blend into a smoothie. Buy a large container of low-fat yogurt instead of the more expensive individual containers.
- Instead of grabbing a pricey bag of potato chips, snack on a banana. Or for a little variety, munch on a handful of nuts.
- Take a break from processed meats ? which are high in sodium and often expensive ? and make a sandwich with nutrient-rich peanut butter or light canned tuna.
- Substitute low-fat milk or a small serving of orange juice for higher-fat dairy beverages, sodas or other sugary, low-nutrient beverages.
