Over the past decade, the importance of consuming a healthful diet containing three daily servings of low-fat or fat-free milk or equivalent milk products – as recommended in the 2005 Dietary Guidelines for Americans – has emerged as a potential effective strategy together with recommended lifestyle practices to help manage blood pressure and improve heart health.

Alarmingly, one in three adults has high blood pressure, which is one of the leading causes of heart disease and stroke. High blood pressure or hypertension is a common disorder affecting many Americans, both children and adults. Because of its high prevalence, serious health consequences, and economic burden, lifestyle changes, including dietary modifications, are recommended to help prevent and manage hypertension and overall heart health.

The landmark, U.S. government-sponsored, controlled-feeding study called the DASH Trial provides compelling support for a blood pressure-lowering effect of dairy foods. The Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) Trial demonstrated that a low-fat dietary pattern high in dairy foods (two to three servings/day) and fruits and vegetables (eight to ten servings/day) – the so-called DASH dietary pattern – produced significant reductions in systolic and diastolic blood pressure in adults with pre-hypertension or hypertension. The blood pressure-lowering effect of the DASH dietary pattern was particularly effective for those with hypertension and African Americans, a group at high risk for hypertension.

Consuming DASH-like dietary patterns characterized by high intakes of dairy foods, fruits, and vegetables has been shown to have beneficial effects on blood pressure in adults, as well as children and adolescents. In a recent study of adolescents with pre-hypertension or hypertension, consumption of a DASH-like dietary pattern for three months reduced systolic blood pressure and improved the quality of their diets.

Preventing high blood pressure and improving heart health are important throughout life. Accumulating scientific evidence suggests that small changes in lifestyle, including diet, can have a beneficial effect on blood pressure. Consuming a healthful diet consistent with a DASH dietary pattern including three servings of low-fat or fat-free dairy foods a day is one approach that may help achieve and maintain a healthy blood pressure, which in turn lowers the risk of developing heart disease.

New research adds to the body of evidence that dairy foods may indeed affect blood pressure and overall heart health.

Supportive Science:
Kris-Etherton, P., J.A. Grieger, K. Hilpert, et al. Effects of Dairy Products on Intracellular Calcium and Blood Pressure in Adults with Essential Hypertension. J. Am. Coll. Nutr. 2009 28: 103S-119S.

Prevent Heart Disease (OmniHeart): options for a heart-healthy diet. Journal of the American Dietetic Association.2008; 108: 257-265.

Elliott P, et al. Dietary phosphorus and blood pressure: international study of macro- and micro-nutrients and blood pressure. Hypertension. 2008; 51: 669-675.

Couch et al. The Efficacy of a Clinic-Based Behavioral Nutrition Intervention Emphasizing a DASH-Type Diet for Adolescents with Elevated Blood Pressure.  Journal of Pediatrics 2008; 152: 494-501.

Miller, G.D., J.K. Jarvis, and L.D. McBean. Handbook of Dairy Foods and Nutrition. 3rd ed. Boca Raton, FL: CRC Press, 2007, pp. 99-139.

Djousse, L., J.S. Pankow, S.C. Hunt, et al. Influence of Saturated Fat and Linolenic Acid on the Association Between Intake of Dairy Products and Blood Pressure. Hypertension 2006; 48: 335 – 341.

Appel, L.J., T.J. Moore, E. Obarzanek, et al. A Clinical Trial of the Effects of Dietary Patterns on Blood Pressure. N. Engl. J. Med. 336: 1117, 1997.