Choose foods from each of the food groups below each day. Try to get the recommended number of servings for each food group. The serving numbers are based on a diet of 2,000 calories a day. Talk with your doctor if you're not sure about your calorie needs. Along with getting the correct servings, the DASH eating plan also advises less than 2,300 mg of salt (sodium) per day. Lowering sodium intake to 1,500 mg per day lowers blood pressure even more. (There's about 2,300 mg of sodium in 1 teaspoon of salt.)
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Food group
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Amounts
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Best choices
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Grains
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Servings: 6 to 8 a day
A serving is:
- 1 slice bread
- 1 ounce dry cereal
- Half a cup cooked rice, pasta, or cereal
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Whole grains and any high-fiber grains
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Vegetables
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Servings: 4 to 5 a day
A serving is:
- 1 cup raw leafy vegetable
- Half a cup cut-up raw or cooked vegetable
- Half a cup vegetable juice
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Fresh or frozen vegetables cooked without added salt or fat
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Fruits
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Servings: 4 to 5 a day
A serving is:
- 1 medium fruit
- One-quarter cup dried fruit
- Half a cup fresh, frozen, or canned fruit
- Half a cup of 100% fruit juices
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A variety of fresh fruits of different colors. Whole fruits are a better choice than fruit juices.
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Low-fat or fat-free dairy
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Servings: 2 to 3 a day
A serving is:
- 1 cup milk
- 1 cup yogurt
- One and a half ounces cheese
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Skim or 1% milk, low-fat or fat-free yogurt or buttermilk, and low-fat cheeses
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Lean meats, poultry, fish
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Servings: 6 or fewer a day
A serving is:
- 1 ounce cooked meats, poultry, or fish
- 1 egg
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Lean poultry and fish. Trim away visible fat. Broil, grill, roast, or boil instead of frying. Remove skin from poultry before eating. Limit how much red meat you eat.
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Nuts, seeds, beans
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Servings: 4 to 5 a week
A serving is:
- One-third cup nuts (1.5 ounces)
- 2 tablespoons nut butter or seeds
- Half a cup cooked dry beans or legumes
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Dry roasted nuts with no salt added, lentils, kidney beans, garbanzo beans, and whole pinto beans
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Fats and oils
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Servings: 2 to 3 a day
A serving is:
- 1 teaspoon vegetable oil
- 1 teaspoon soft margarine
- 1 tablespoon mayonnaise
- 2 tablespoons salad dressing
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Nut and vegetable oils (nontropical vegetable oils), such as olive and canola oil
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Sweets
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Servings: 5 a week or fewer
A serving is:
- 1 tablespoon sugar, maple syrup, or honey
- 1 tablespoon jam or jelly
- 1 half-ounce jellybeans (about 15)
- 1 cup lemonade
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Dried fruit can be a satisfying sweet. Choose low-fat sweets. And watch your serving sizes!
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