Eating fruits and veggies are the key to good heart health: Study

When it comes to hypertension, doctors believe that prevention is better than cure. Which is why perhaps many experts suggest people to partake in DASH:  Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension. 

Recommended by the US National Institutes of Health, DASH encourages you to reduce sodium in your diet and include lots of whole grains, fruits, vegetables, and low-fat dairy products. 

This is the impact of the DASH diet on heart health
According to research, a diet rich in fruits and vegetables when consumed over a long period helps maintain cardiovascular health. Since the DASH diet encourages rich consumption of fruits and vegetables, it can help keep us safe from cardiovascular disease (CVD) according to experts. 

Interestingly, a study published in the Annals of Internal Medicine attempted to compare the DASH diet with a typical American diet. Post analysis it was found that the effects of  DASH diet had a huge impact on reducing cardiac damage, cardiac strain, and inflammation in middle-aged adults without known preexisting CVD.

The diet also includes some fish, poultry and legumes, and encourages a small amount of nuts and seeds a few times a week. After analysis, the study concluded that adding these rich foods helped lower the concentration of the biomarkers of subclinical cardiac damage and strain compared with the control group.

Final analysis of the research
Multiple types of research support the hypothesis that adopting a healthy diet directly reduces CVD injury or is effective for the primary prevention of CVD. Therefore, you must eat foods recommended in the DASH diet to help anyone suffering from hypertension in your family.

The researchers stated that the higher amounts of potassium, magnesium, and fibre in the diet may partly explain the positive impact on heart health. These findings suggest that the recommended DASH diet is effective as a means of optimising cardiovascular health, the researchers noted.

Also, Read: These yoga techniques can help your parents deal with hypertension

The takeaway?
Since the food items recommended have shown a positive impact on preventing or reducing the impact of cardiovascular disease, you must add them to your diet. It’s time to up your intake of fruits and vegetables and start eating fish, poultry, legumes and nuts in moderation to preserve heart health.

(With inputs from IANS)