Читать книгу DASH Diet For Dummies - Sarah Samaan - Страница 31

The scientists set up their research as a randomized, controlled trial, which means they followed strict scientific principles to limit any deviation from the study, provided all the meals, and monitored the research subjects very closely.

For their first experiment, the DASHers recruited 459 brave men and women, all of whom had borderline to high blood pressure. To be included, the participants’ baseline systolic pressure couldn’t be higher than 160, and the diastolic readings could range from 80 to 95. No one was on blood pressure medication.

Women have often been under-represented in medical studies, but the DASH researchers were smart enough to avoid that mistake. About half of those enrolled were female. The researchers also made sure to enroll a large number of African-American participants, about 60 percent of the total group, because they knew that high blood pressure is especially prevalent in African Americans (currently about 46 percent, compared to around a third of whites, Hispanics, and Asians).

DASH hasn’t been studied on a large scale in Hispanics, Asians, or other ethnic groups, but small studies have found similar benefits in Hispanic Americans and in Chinese men and women, and it is easily adaptable for a wide variety of dietary preferences. No matter who you are or where you’re from, if you have high blood pressure or are at risk for it, you owe it to yourself to check out the DASH diet.

The people studied were also diverse in other ways. Some were low-income; others middle-to-upper-middle class. Their average age was 44, but the range of ages was wide. Most were overweight, but some were obese.