Dietary changes may improve health of heart failure patients.

Following the DASH (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) eating plan can reduce blood pressure and improve heart function in patients with diastolic heart failure, according to research presented Sept. 26, 2013 at the Heart Failure Society of America annual meeting. After 21 days on the DASH eating plan, patients who had diastolic heart failure (a type of heart failure common among older adults) saw drops in their blood pressure numbers similar to reductions seen with anti-hypertension medicine. They also had less stiffness in the diastolic chambers of their hearts and improved relaxation in their left ventricles, which improved the transfer of blood between the heart and arteries. The findings suggest that a diet lower in sodium and high in potassium, magnesium, calcium, and antioxidants, such as the DASH diet, could help slow the progression of heart failure.