DASH Your Way to Vegetarianism
The newest way to lower your blood pressure and become a healthier you, according to several American organizations including the National Institutes of Health, is to follow Maria Heller’s book-and-diet plan known as the DASH (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) diet plan.
Reporting success with weight loss as well, the DASH plan lays out meals under a new food pyramid that includes more plant-based nutrition.
… hmm …. to me, this sounds like my diet plan six months before going vegetarian: slowly backing away from eating meat; increasing veggie and fruit consumption; finding new and better ways to fill your belly, and get plenty of protein.
Check out the Top 10 DASH Diet Tips. You’ll find not one mention of meat. Plus, replace the word “skim” with “soy” and you’ve got one healthy vegan diet, my friends!
Top 10 DASH Diet Tips
1. Use grocery store salad bars for lots of cut up fresh vegetables.
2. Frozen vegetables make it easy to add 2 or more servings of veggies to your meal.
3. Double up on veggies. A serving is 1/2 cup, so a full cup makes 2 servings.
4. Berry-licious is having fresh berries on your cereal.
5. Nonfat fruit yogurt, artificially sweetened, makes a wonderful snack or quick breakfast.
6. All nuts are heart healthy. Making yours salt-free boosts their DASH benefits.
7. Some convenience foods make your DASH diet great. Look for bagged ready-to-eat cut up veggies, like baby carrots, broccoli sprigs, lettuce, cabbage slaw, broccoli slaw, cauliflower tops, etc.
8. Make your plate colorful. Add 1 - 2 cooked vegetables and a side salad with more than just greens.
9. Make your coffee a latte with 8 ounces of skim milk.
10. Smoothies made with skim milk, fresh fruit, and no added sugar make a fast way to maximize the DASH potential of your diet.
To learn more about the DASH Diet, including purchasing info, click on the picture above.
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