Best Diet for Healthy Eating—DASH Diet Comes Out on Top

Dash Diet Comes Out on Top!

Every year the U.S. News and World Report comes out with a new list ranking the Best Diets. The battle for the top position seems to toggle between the Mediterranean and DASH Diet.  In 2020 it is a tie for these two approaches to healthy eating.

All of us have a sense of what the Mediterranean diet is but what is a DASH Diet? According to the Report “The DASH Diet…stands for dietary approaches to stop hypertension and is promoted by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute to do exactly that: stop (or prevent) hypertension, aka high blood pressure. It emphasizes the foods you've always been told to eat (fruits, veggies, whole grains, lean protein and low-fat dairy), which are high in blood pressure-deflating nutrients like potassium, calcium, protein and fiber. DASH also discourages foods that are high in saturated fat, such as fatty meats, full-fat dairy foods and tropical oils, as well as sugar-sweetened beverages and sweets. Following DASH also means capping sodium at 2,300 milligrams a day, which followers will eventually lower to about 1,500 milligrams. DASH Diet is balanced and can be followed long term, which is a key reason nutrition experts rank it as U.S. News’ Best Overall Diet, tied with the Mediterranean Diet.”

From the Book: Spanish-Style Pan-Roasted Cod...served up on Livliga's Vivente dinner plate...oh...so...good!

When you compare these two diets it is evident that they are very similar in types of foods they promote and their focus on health as a lifestyle. I got to thinking that if you combined the two you would end up with the perfect long-term healthy lifestyle diet. It turns out Marla Heller, MS, RD has already done this in her book, The DASH Diet: Mediterranean Solution.

Livliga Healthy Lamb Tagine on Halsa Portion Control Dinnerware

Ms. Heller offers detailed information about our health and the impact the food we eat, in specific quantities, has on our health. She presents a compelling argument why all of us can benefit from these two methods of eating combined. As she states, “The Mediterranean and DASH diets have so many hidden benefits for the health of the whole body. These diets help reduce systemic inflammation, and risk of heart disease and stroke, type 2 diabetes, and certain types of cancer. They protect our bone health and kidneys, and may even be associated with a lower risk for depression.” She also provides an eating plan as well as a 14-day Meal plan to get you started. Recipes are provided like Spanish-Style Pan-Roasted Cod and Lamb Tagine. Of the recipes I have tried I found them to be simple and straightforward to follow as well as tasty to eat. Here is another version of Lamb Tagine available on the Livliga Live Vibrant blog.

Tending to our health is the greatest gift we can give to ourselves as well as the ones we love. It is amazing to realize that just by eating certain foods and cooking them in a certain way we can improve our health and live as our healthiest selves.  We all deserve to live a healthy life.

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Discovered: The healthiest meal ever?

Have you ever wondered what the perfect healthy meal would look like? Below is a researchers take on it:

Smoked salmon, chicken casserole, and yogurt are part of what one group is calling the most nutritious multicourse meal ever assembled

The supposed healthiest meal starts off with a salmon terrine, which contains heart- and artery-friendly Omega 3s.
 

These days, the food industry seems determined to provide healthier options, and even fast food companies are overhauling their menus with healthier offerings. Perhaps that's why food experts from England set out to determine what the healthiest, most nutrient-packed meal in the world would actually look like. The team studied more than 4,000 health claims and narrowed the list down to 222 before piecing together what they consider to be the most nutritious multicourse meal on the planet. Here, a concise guide to the undertaking:

What's in it?
The meal starts with a salmon terrine, which is smoked fish served with olive oil and a dusting of fresh herbs, alongside a mixed leaf salad with an extra-virgin olive oil dressing. Up next is a chicken and lentil casserole, accompanied by mixed veggies and a high-fiber multigrain roll on the side. Dessert is a vanilla-pudding-like blancmange, which consists of yogurt topped with walnuts and sugar-free caramel sauce.

What makes the meal so healthy?The meal contains a variety of so-called "superfoods," serving up an ideal mix of vitamins, proteins, and chemicals conducive to a healthy lifestyle. The smoked fish, for example, contains heart- and artery-friendly omega-3s, while the high fiber content in the multigrain bread helps give the brain a boost. The chicken's high protein count helps build lean muscle mass, while pantothenic acid in lentils makes the brain more alert. To wash it all down, the active cultures in yogurt help promote digestion, and are also good for one's teeth, blood, and glucose control.

Where did the researchers get this idea?Dr. Paul Berryman, CEO of Leatherhead Food Research, came up with the idea while flying home from a food conference. Originally, the project was envisioned as an airline meal, but Berryman decided instead to make a meal product that supported 222 vetted health claims. "It wasn't that simple, but we did it within one week," says Berryman.

Is it really the world's healthiest meal?
That's a point of contention. In 2009, chef Gurpareet Bains also whipped up a meal composed of "superfoods" that he considered to be the world's healthiest: A curry made with blueberries, goji berries, chicken, ginger, and garlic. Bains claims that the hearty, saucy dish may even help fight cancer cells. The point that both studies are aiming to make is that when it comes to eating healthy, flavor is as critical as are antioxidants. "Healthy foods do not have to be dull," says Berryman. "No matter how healthy, if foods do not taste good they will not sell."

Sources: Christian Post, Daily Mail, Huffington Post, Yahoo

 

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