Baraka_Guru

DASH Diet Named Best Overall Weight Loss Plan

Full report:
Health Buzz: U.S. News Ranks 'Best Diets' - US News and World Report

According to the Wikipedia entry, the DASH diet has the following principles:
DASH diet - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

So basically, the DASH diet is a diet carefully designed to reduce/control hypertension. Bottom line: its goal is to fight heart disease.

As you may know, heart disease is heavily influenced by dietary factors. I must admit that I've never heard of this specific diet, but it is based on nutritional principles of which I am already familiar. It's good, however, that a) it has been formalized into something official, and b) it's been studied.

Furthermore, it has now been found to be the "best" diet out there. "Best" is knowingly placed in quotation marks because it's considered the best based on all the above criteria, as in "best overall."

I'm surprised that it even beat out the Mediterranean diet. And I know that Weight Watchers is well-designed. So this is news to me.

• What do you think of this diet?
• What do you think of the study/report?
• Would you try this diet?
• Have you heard of it before? Have you tried it before?
  
• Do you think this diet should be promoted as a solution to the obesity epidemic?
• Is this good publicity? Will it gain traction?

If I needed to lose some serious weight, or if I had heart health risks, I think this would be my first stop.

__________________
Knowing that death is certain and that the time of death is uncertain, what's the most important thing?
—Bhikkhuni Pema Chödrön

Humankind cannot bear very much reality.
—From "Burnt Norton," Four Quartets (1936), T. S. Eliot

Willravel

What do you think of this diet?
It's okay, but it would be better if it were much lower in grains, even of the whole variety. People were naturally selected in an environment which was high in nutrient-rich vegetation and game meat. That's what we eat. Grains and dairy are really only a few thousand years old, which is the blink of an eye when compared to the history of our species and the species that preceded us. While we're slowly adapting to a diet high in breads, dairy, and processed foods, it's not going to happen overnight and people need to realize that. I know I sound very Paleo, but there are some very compelling scientific argument to support the concept of a low-grain, high vegetable diet.

What do you think of the study/report?
"Diets" are a misguided concept. There's food, and there's not-food. In the food group, there are some things that are more efficient than other things. These things can all be established objectively. Atkins or Weight Watchers are just artificial constructs with arbitrary rules, bypassing real nutrition education in favor of pop-science.

Would you try this diet?
If I am ever overweight again, which is a likelihood considering that my next heart surgery will require me to not exercise for many months, I already know how to lose weight and it's not found in a book. You crank up the protein a bit and turn down the carbohydrates while doing high intensity cardiovascular exercise and strength training, then as time goes on you return to a regular balance of protein, fats, and carbohydrates. So no, I don't need it. I've done it before, and I'll do it again.

Have you heard of it before? Have you tried it before?
No, no.

Do you think this diet should be promoted as a solution to the obesity epidemic?
No. The idea of dieting is a poor one. It makes people think that putting themselves on an odd and restrictive food regimen for a select amount of time will perform a miracle. Most people, of course, get tired of the restrictiveness and quit. Of those who stick with it, only some actually get the results they were looking for. I'll quote an amazing NYT article by Michael Pollan: "Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants." It's not a diet, it's just what people are supposed to eat, fat or thin, young or old.

Is this good publicity? Will it gain traction?
The last thing diet plans need are more publicity.

snowy

I agree with will in that I hate the word "diet". It has come to suggest something temporary, instead of a lasting change in behaviors.

As for the grains element: the nutritional benefit of the fiber from whole grains is definitely something people at risk for heart disease need. Further, whole grains such as brown rice are good sources of trace minerals like manganese. In terms of food budgets, whole grains are cheaper than fresh fruits and vegetables, so including them makes the diet more monetarily practical. I can buy a liter of brown rice for $3.

I have heard of this diet before, namely in my nutrition class. My nutrition professor made it clear that this was an effective and nutritionally-balanced diet compared to other diets discussed in class.

Would I try it? Probably. It isn't that different from what I was doing when I lost weight, and it was extremely effective. I need to get back on the eating healthy wagon...at some point.

As for the obesity epidemic, I think diet is only one component of the problem. Education about food is another problem. Getting people to cook for themselves is another. There are a lot of issues that need to be addressed beyond just what people put in their mouths.

__________________
If I am not better, at least I am different. --Jean-Jacques Rousseau

Willravel

I suppose I didn't factor budget into my assessment. If one is on a budget, high fiber, higher nutrient grains would be an okay option. If one can afford it, though, more vegetables and less grains is probably best. One can get plenty of dietary fiber from vegetables and nuts. It's not like eating an apple skin is the same as a big bowl of bran cereal, but it's higher in micro nutrients and I think lower in calories.

Where do you stand, Baraka_Guru?

Baraka_Guru

Let's first get down to the specifics. The DASH diet outlines the following recommended servings:

Food and Servings

• Grains and grain products: 7 to 8 a day (e.g. 1 slice bread, half a cup dry cereal, half a cup cooked rice, pasta, or cereal)
• Vegetables: 4 to 5 a day (e.g. 1 cup raw leafy vegetable, half a cup cooked vegetable, three quarter cup vegetable juice
• Fruits: 4 to 5 a day (e.g. three quarter cup fruit juice, 1 medium fruit, one quarter cup dried fruit, one half cup fresh, frozen, or canned fruit)
• Low-fat or non-fat dairy food: 2 to 3 a day (e.g. 1 cup skim or 1% milk, 1 cup low-fat yogurt, 1 and a half oz. part-skim or non-fat cheese)
• Meats, poultry, & fish: 2 or less a day (3 oz. broiled or roasted lean meats, skinless poultry, or fish)
• Nuts, seeds, & beans: 4 to 5 a week (e.g. one third cup nuts, 2 Tbs. sunflower seeds, half cup cooked beans )
• Added fats, oils, & salad dressing: 2 to 3 a day (e.g. 1 tsp. oil or soft margarine, 1 tsp. regular mayonnaise, 1 Tbs. low-fat mayonnaise, 1 Tbs. regular salad dressing, 2 Tbs. light salad dressing)
• Snacks & sweets: 5 a week (e.g. 1 medium fruit, 1 cup low-fat yogurt, half cup low-fat frozen yogurt, three quarter cup pretzels, 1 Tbs. maple syrup, sugar, jelly, or jam, half cup Jell-O, 3 pieces hard candy, 15 jellybeans)

So given the current trend of low-carb dieting, the 7 to 8 servings of grain and grain products is likely the most controversial. The low-carb craze really is variations on a theme. So you get Atkins, the ketogenic diet, the Paleo diet, etc., but they all focus on one thing: reducing or nearly eliminating (at least restricting) "carbs."

From a physiological perspective, it is understood that the body runs on glucose and glycogen as an energy source, which are carbs in themselves. But there is a difference between dietary carbs and biological carbs, I grant you that. But the fact remains, the body will find its carbs regardless, and it prefers glucose as its prime source, followed by glycogen, then fat, then muscle.

From an anthropological perspective, there is evidence that a fair portion of the Paleolithic diet consisted of carbs. There is evidence of tubers being a part of the diet. The challenge for many years is that humans didn't often have the benefit of established long-term settlements, and so secure food sourcing was an issue. It's no surprise that grains, legumes, and even tubers weren't a prominent feature.

However, there is mounting evidence that grains were a part of ancient diets. Have a look:
Figures and Tables : Processing of wild cereal grains in the Upper Palaeolithic revealed by starch grain analysis : Nature
Harvard Gazette: Researchers find earliest known oven
Observations: Humans feasting on grains for at least 100,000 years

From an evolutionary standpoint, humans are expert generalists. We're not carnivores; we're not herbivores; we're omnivores. We're highly adaptable and there is also evidence of this. The challenge remains, however, of finding enough evidence of food-related matters of such periods, considering how long ago they were.

That said, I don't think the consumption of legumes and grains is inherently bad. I don't think the consumption of most food is inherently bad. Food, generally, is a source of energy and nutrients, and so we must look at the balance of such energy and nutrients. Grain contains nutritional material unique to grains. Some of this material is unique to specific grains. Some of these are antioxidants and phytonutrients found to have great benefit to heart health, colon health, etc., and are found in such things as oats and buckwheat, which, in my opinion, are nutritional powerhouses.

But whole grains are whole grains: the endosperm, the germ, the bran—the whole kit and kaboodle. If I'm not mistaken, the majority of grain products consumed in North America are refined, which means that the germ and bran are removed, while the endosperm is mashed into fine white flour. Between the germ and bran, this removes important essential fatty acids, vitamin E, fibre, phytonutrients, B-vitamins, and a wide array of trace minerals. White flour is grain made impotent. That's the problem.

The human body is designed to take advantage of a wide array of foods, and it thrives on being able to benefit from this array. Reducing the array can introduce problems of imbalance. Will, you mentioned fibre. While fruit and vegetables have fibre, grains have a counterbalance of fibre that helps ensure we get enough of both soluble and insoluble fibre.

Before I get too long-winded here, I will say outright that grains aren't bad for you, nor do you have to severely restrict them to be healthy. Grains contain vitamins, minerals, essential fatty acids, complex carbohydrates, protein, and fibre, often in good supply. They are a great source of nutrition. Some, such as oats, actually help with the insulin response, despite what people might think.

The problem isn't grain; the problem isn't carbs. The problem is too much over-processed grains and over-processed food in general. The problem is too much bad fat, and not enough good fat. (Omega-3s anyone?)

Singling out one or two aspects of our diet (whether it's a macronutrient or an entire food group) I think does more to distract from the greater issue: not enough of us eat wholesome foods; not enough of us balance our diets. We eat too much refined grains and sugar. We eat too much salt, etc.

We can say that "diet" is a dirty word and is a concept that sets people up for failure, but diet is diet regardless: it's what we eat. North Americans clearly need guidance, and I would argue that if more North Americans were instructed on how to follow the DASH diet, obesity would be less epidemicky.

__________________
Knowing that death is certain and that the time of death is uncertain, what's the most important thing?
—Bhikkhuni Pema Chödrön

Humankind cannot bear very much reality.
—From "Burnt Norton," Four Quartets (1936), T. S. Eliot

hunnychile

The best diet I've ever used was when I gave up desserts, except for fruit...and going many days without drinking "adult beverages".

Plus I was making sure my bread consumption was half of my normal intake, i.e. open face sandwiches - like so amny Europeans do. And only whole grains, nothing bleached. Made a huge difference and I've been feeling so much better since these dietary changes.

For me this has been easy and it works well. Gotta say that the Dash Diet looks pretty good and easy to live with as well.

Thank you for sharing!!

__________________
"I need compassion, understanding and chocolate." - NJB