A Review of the DASH Diet as an Optimal Dietary Plan for Symptomatic Heart Failure

Despite tremendous focus, effort, drug and device development and resources dedicated to the care of patients at risk for and with heart failure (HF), the epidemic continues. The HF patient presents with a widely deranged physiology and typically at the same time is malnourished adding to the disease complexity and therapeutic challenges. Most nutritional approaches for patients with HF focus on dietary restrictions (of salt and water) and lack uniformity or clarity or focus on meeting nutritional needs, barriers and deficits of the patient with HF. Finally, it seems reasonable to anticipate that any dietary program recommendation should contribute in a positive way toward HF management goals and at its foundation positively contribute to the deranged physiology. In many ways the "Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension" (DASH) dietary program fulfills these needs and early evidence supports the notion that the DASH diet may be optimal for patients with HF. This brief review examines some of this evidence and provides recommendations for the HF community.