Slimmers Dash for the veggies

[caption id="attachment_65099" align="alignright" width="300"] D-DAY FOR DIETS: The Dash diet may work for families wanting to lose weight -[/caption]

Hypertension diet outpaces all competitors.

January is the month when so many try to lose weight after a festive summer of overindulgence – but what diet will work for you? For every one person who swears by Tim Noakes, there are others favouring low GI and still others who go on the cabbage soup diets, not to mention the plethora of slimming products, programmes and potions.

According to US News and World Report, an American media company that publishes consumer advice, rankings and analysis, the answer could be the Dash diet, where Dash is an acronym for “dietary approaches to stop hypertension”.

The Dash diet, rich in vegetables, whole grains and low-fat dairy, has been named the best overall diet for the fifth consecutive year, outpacing Weight Watchers and the Mediterranean diet, according to the US News & World Report.

Dash, which was developed to lower blood pressure without medication, was also chosen by a panel of health experts as the top diabetes diet and the best plan for healthy eating.

Weight Watchers retained the No 1 spot as the best diet for weight loss, followed by the HMR (Healthy Management Resources) low-calorie, meal-replacement plan, and the Jenny Craig, which offers prepared meals to drop excess pounds.

- Partricia Reaney