Effects of the dietary approaches to stop hypertension diet alone and in combination with exercise and caloric restriction on insulin sensitivity and lipids.

Description

This study was conducted to investigate the independent and combined effects of the DASH (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) diet and weight loss plus exercise on blood pressure (BP) and biomarkers of risk. The study sample was derived from the Exercise and Nutritional Interventions for Cardiovascular Health (ENCORE) Study and included 144 overweight/obese men (n=47) and women (n=97) with high BP (systolic BP: 130-159 mmHg and diastolic BP: 85-99 mmHg) who were randomly assigned to one of the following groups for four months of treatment with the DASH diet alone (DASH-A), or the DASH diet combined with a behavioural weight management program, including caloric restriction and aerobic exercise (DASH-WM). The two groups were compared to a usual diet control group (UC). Results showed that both DASH-A and DASH-WM were associated with larger BP reductions compared with UC group. However, only DASH-WM participants demonstrated significant improvements in glucose tolerance, insulin sensitivity and lipids. These results suggest that the DASH diet by itself produced minimal improvements in insulin sensitivity or lipids.