What a day's worth of food on a healthy diet looks like

The diets used in the DASH and OmniHeart studies trim blood pressure and LDL (“bad”) cholesterol. Here’s an example of what those diets look like. Our day's worth of food is a hybrid of the two OmniHeart diets—one higher in protein and one higher in unsaturated fat—that also lowered triglycerides.

Click here for a chart that shows you how many servings to aim for—and what a typical serving consists of—if you eat roughly 2,000 calories a day. (Those servings are listed in the chart below each sample meal.)

We used the "Wild Card" serving for protein, but you can use it for more oil or carbs if you prefer. And we added a few extra servings of fruits and vegetables. Extra salad greens can’t hurt!


Breakfast

Fruit 2 servings 1 banana, 1 melon wedge
Low-fat Dairy 1 serving 1 cup milk
Grains 2 servings 1 cup bran cereal


Lunch & afternoon snack

Fish & Poultry 1 serving 4 oz. chicken
Vegetables 6 servings 4 cups greens, 1 cup raw veggies
Oils & Fats 1 serving 1 Tbs. oil (in 2 Tbs. salad dressing)
Fruit 2 servings 1 orange, 1/4 cup dried fruit
Legumes & Nuts 1 serving 1/4 cup almonds
Grains 2 servings 2 oz. baguette


Dinner & evening snack

Fish & Poultry 1 serving 4 oz. salmon ("Wild Card")
Vegetables 3 servings 1 cup broccoli, 1/2 cup carrots
Legumes & Nuts 1 serving 1/2 cup bean salad
Oils & Fats 1 serving 1/2 Tbs. oil (in bean salad), 1/2 Tbs. oil (in broccoli & carrots)
Low-fat Dairy 1 serving 1 cup plain yogurt
Fruit 1 serving 1/2 cup berries
Desserts & Sweets 2 servings 2 small cookies


Photos: Paige Einstein/CSPI (breakfast), Stephen Schmidt/CSPI (lunch & dinner).