Could a High-Fat DASH Diet Effectively Lower Blood Pressure?
A high-fat Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) diet effectively lowers blood pressure as much as a standard DASH diet but also helps to lower plasma triglyceride and very-low-density lipoprotein (VLDL) levels without increasing LDL cholesterol levels, according to a recent study.
The DASH diet—a diet high in fruit, vegetables, and low-fat dairy—has been shown to lower blood pressure and LDL and HDL cholesterol levels, but the effectiveness of a DASH diet incorporating full-fat dairy products is less well understood.
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To test the diet, researchers conducted a 3-period randomized crossover trial including healthy adults. The participants consumed, in random order, a control diet, standard DASH diet, and a high-fat DASH diet for 3 weeks each, separated by 2 weeks without adhering to any diet.
Overall, 36 participants completed all 3 dietary periods. Blood pressure levels in both the DASH diet and high-fat DASH diet periods were similarly reduced compared to the control diet, while the high-fat DASH diet significantly reduced triglycerides and VLDL levels compared to the standard DASH diet. The standard DASH diet reduced LDL and HDL levels compared to the HF-Dash diet.
“The high-fat DASH diet lowered blood pressure to the same extent as the DASH diet but also reduced plasma triglyceride and VLDL concentrations without significantly increasing LDL cholesterol,” they concluded.
—Michael Potts
Reference:
Chiu S, Bergeron N, Williams PT, et al. Comparison of the DASH (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) diet and a higher-fat DASH diet on blood pressure and lipids and lipoproteins: a randomized controlled trial. The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. December 2015 [epub ahead of print]. doi: 10.3945/ajcn.115.123281.