2025 has just begun and we already have a best diet with us, well, the second-best. As per the US News & World Report's Best Diets ranking by examining 38 types of diets in 21 categories, the DASH diet or the Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension developed by Pennington Biomedical Research Center scientists, earns the second position.

The DASH diet is known as one of the most heart-healthy diets that is known for fighting blood pressure. As per Dr John Kirwan, Executive Director of Pennington Biomedical, "The DASH Diet was developed by some of our Pennington Biomedical pioneers, with Dr. George Bray, Dr. Donna Ryan and Dr. Catherine Champagne among the lead developers in the DASH Diet Collaborative Research Group. Thirty years after its development, the DASH Diet has stood the test of time and is a proven eating plan with numerous health benefits. Pennington Biomedical is proud of our history and role in the DASH Diet."

The DASH diet has not just made it to the top best diets overall, but it has also second the first rank for being the best heart-healthy diets and best diets for high blood pressure. It got a second position for best diets for high cholesterol, prediabetes, healthy eating, and gut health. It secured third position for best diabetes diets and best diets to follow. Lastly, it secured fourth position for best diets for mental health, menopause, arthritis, and brain health.

What is DASH?

The DASH diet was created after researchers noticed that high blood pressure was much less common in those who followed a plant based diets, vegans and vegetarians. This is why DASH diet mostly consists of fruits and vegetables. In terms of lean protein it includes chicken and fish. The diet is low in red meat, salt, added sugars and fat.

ALSO READ: The Best Diet To Opt For In 2025

As per the 2023 study by Hima J Challa, et.al., published in the National Library of Medicine's National Center for Biotechnology Information, scientists believe that the main reason people with high blood pressure benefit from this diet is because it reduces salt intakes. Which means you cannot have no more than 3/4 teaspoon (tsp), which is around 1,500 milligrams (mg) of sodium per day.

What are the benefits of this diet?

Different studies published on the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute in a review from December 2021, titled The Science Behind the DASH Eating Plan, mentions that DASH diet is effective in reducing blood pressure.

Another 2020 study titled A Calorie-Restricted DASH Diet Reduces Body Fat and Maintains Muscle Strength in Obese Older Adults, states that following DASH has helped older adults over 65 with obesity reduce body fat.

Furthermore, a 2019 review published in the Journal of American Nutrition by Mohammad Ali Mohsenpour, et.al., also found that people who followed the DASH diet had a lower risk of cancer. These cancers including breast, hepatic, endometrial, and lung cancer.

A different 2019 study titled Association between the DASH diet and metabolic syndrome components in Iranian adults found that it also reduces your risk of metabolic syndrome by 50%. The diet also finds links to lowering the chance of diabetes as found in the 2023 study by Thomas M Campbell, et.al..

Among the last of the many more benefits, a 2019 study by Laura Chiavaroli, et.al., found that following DASH can be linked to lower chance of developing heart diseases.

What can you eat in DASH?

• More fruits and vegetables
• More whole grains, less refined grains
• Fat-free or low fat dairy products
• Lean protein
• Vegetable oil for cooking
• Limit intake of sugar, soda, candy
• Limit intake of saturated fats like fatty meats, processed foods, full-fat dairy, and oils like coconut and palm oil

In a world filled with conflicting health advice, it can be difficult to know what to eat for a healthy heart. Many times, the ‘healthy food’ we are advertised and eat are actually not good for your health! Misleading names and not reading labels properly can lead to people consuming food that is hurting their heart. Explaining the same, Cardiologist Sanjay Bhojraj MD. His list sheds light on common misconceptions and offers a clear path toward making better dietary choices for your cardiovascular health.

How Our Food Affect Heart Health?

According to the National Health Services UK eating an unhealthy diet that's high in fat can make atherosclerosis worse. This condition, also known as hardening of the arteries, happens when fatty plaques build up inside your arteries.

Consistently eating high-fat foods, which contain an unhealthy type of cholesterol, leads to more of this plaque buildup. This narrows your arteries and significantly increases your risk of having a heart attack.

Eating a healthy diet is a keyway to lower your risk of heart disease. Your food choices, along with a healthy lifestyle, can help you avoid a range of serious health problems. Here is a list of foods you should avoid buying according to Dr Sanjay.

Agave Syrup

While often marketed as a healthier alternative to sugar, agave syrup can quickly raise your triglyceride levels. This can be harmful to your heart and may increase the risk of cardiovascular problems, making it a poor choice for those with inflamed arteries.

Coconut Oil

When consumed in large amounts, coconut oil contains high levels of saturated fat. This can contribute to inflammation in your arteries, making it an unhealthy choice for heart health despite its popular reputation.

Store-Bought Granola

Many store-bought granolas are highly processed and packed with hidden sugars. Despite their appearance as a health food, these products can lead to blood sugar spikes and are often high in calories and unhealthy additives, which can negatively impact your health.

"Whole Wheat" Bread

Most "whole wheat" breads you find in stores are not as healthy as they seem. They are often ultra-processed white bread with added brown coloring and little nutritional fiber, so they don't provide the benefits of true whole grains.

Flavored Greek Yogurt

While Greek yogurt is known for its protein content, the flavored versions often have a surprising amount of added sugar. This sugar can cancel out the health benefits and contribute to weight gain, making it important to check the nutrition label.

Plant-Based Meat Substitutes

Many plant-based meat substitutes are full of unhealthy ingredients. They can be high in seed oils, sodium, and other additives that are not good for your health, despite being marketed as a healthier alternative to meat.

Rice Cakes

Rice cakes are high on the glycemic index and provide very few nutrients. Eating them can cause your blood sugar to spike and then crash, creating a "rollercoaster" effect that can lead to cravings and fatigue.

Bottled Green Juices

Beware of bottled green juices, which can be loaded with fructose. They often seem like a convenient and healthy choice, but many are little more than sugar bombs that provide a quick sugar rush without the fiber and nutrients of real vegetables.

Flavored Sparkling Water

Many flavored sparkling waters with "natural flavors" can contain synthetic chemicals and acids. These additives may erode your gut lining over time, despite the water's lack of calories, making them a less-than-ideal beverage choice.

Gluten-Free Processed Snacks

Gluten-free processed snacks are often marketed with a health halo, but they are just as likely to cause inflammation as their gluten-containing counterparts. These snacks often contain refined starches and sugar and are just as unhealthy, with better branding.

We all know ultra-processed foods have a bad rap. But it’s not the processing alone that’s harming your health. A new study has pointed the finger at very specific food additives—those extras that make your crisps zing, your fizzy drinks sweet, and your instant noodles irresistible. And some of them, researchers say, could actually increase your risk of death. Yes, death.

Researchers in Germany, publishing their findings in eClinicalMedicine, followed a whopping 186,744 people in the UK for several years. Ages ranged from 40 to 75, so this wasn’t just a “college-student-on-an-instant-ramen-diet” survey. Over the study period, more than 10,000 deaths occurred. And when the scientists dug into what those people were eating, the results were unsettling.

Out of 37 different food additives and markers of ultra-processed foods, five groups stood out for their grim connections to all-cause mortality:

• Flavour additives
• Flavour enhancers
• Colouring agents
• Sweeteners
• Varieties of sugar

Specific ingredients that stood out in the research:

• Glutamate and ribonucleotide (flavour enhancers)
• Acesulfame, saccharin, and sucralose (sweeteners)
• Fructose, inverted sugar, lactose, and maltodextrin (varieties of sugar)
• Caking agents, firming agents, thickeners (the texturising gang)

These are the invisible additives that make food taste better, look prettier, and last longer, but your body isn’t impressed. The study connected them with weight gain, metabolic disruption, and even mischief in your gut microbiota. Basically, your insides know when they’re being tricked.

Not All Additives Are Bad

These gooey, jelly-like ingredients, often rich in pectin (a type of soluble fibre found in fruit), were linked to a lower risk of death. Pectin has a reputation for improving blood sugar levels, supporting digestion, and even showing anti-cancer potential.

What the Study Highlights

The study isn’t saying that every crisp or fizzy drink is instantly fatal. What it highlights is that eating more ultra-processed foods overall is linked with higher mortality risk, and within that big basket, certain additives stand out as particularly problematic.

Interestingly, not every ultra-processed food marker was linked with harm. Modified oils, processing aids, proteins, and fibre didn’t seem to have the same deadly connections.

The findings add nuance to the conversation about food. For years, advice has been a blunt “avoid ultra-processed foods”. But this study suggests the smarter move is to pay attention to which additives are doing the damage. If you spot acesulfame, maltodextrin, or sucralose in your ingredients list, maybe it’s time to put that product back on the shelf.

Meanwhile, it’s not all doom and gloom. Gelling agents might just be good for your gut. And who knows? One day, future food companies might lean more heavily on these safer additives to give us “healthier processed foods” that don’t spell trouble in the long run.

Ultra-processed foods are everywhere, and pretending we can avoid them completely is unrealistic. The real trick is being aware of what’s in them. Flavour enhancers, sweeteners, colouring agents, and sugars deserve the side-eye, while fibre-rich gelling agents can keep their halo.

For years, meat has been positioned as a key concern in the field of nutrition, blamed for shortening lifespans, fuelling cancer, and clogging arteries. Plant protein, in contrast, has been paraded down the health red carpet as the best for longevity. But a new study says otherwise.

The case against animal protein looked convincing: previous studies tied red meat consumption to cancer deaths, supposedly through the hormone IGF-1 (insulin-like growth factor 1), which has been linked to higher cancer risk. Meanwhile, beans, nuts, and lentils basked in praise, appearing to lengthen lives and lower disease risk.

But according to research published in the journal Applied Physiology, Nutrition, and Metabolism, those assumptions might not hold up in court anymore. Three researchers from Canada and the United States sifted through decades of nutritional data, and what they found could rewrite a big chunk of dietary dogma.

What The Study Says

Contrary to what many of us have been told, the study discovered no evidence that eating animal protein raises your chances of dying from cancer, heart disease, or even from any cause at all.

Even more surprising, they found a “small but significant” protective effect of animal protein against cancer-related deaths. Yes, meat, often demonised as the problem, appeared to offer a shield, not a sword.

On the other hand, plant protein, which has been championed for its apparent health perks, did not demonstrate the magical life-extending benefits past studies suggested.

Same Rules Apply, Whatever Your Age

The findings stood firm regardless of age. Whether the participant was a sprightly 20-year-old or in their seventies, the impact of protein type on mortality did not budge.

What did emerge as genuine risk factors? No surprises here: smoking, sedentary behaviour, and ageing itself. In other words, a sausage might not do you in, but a cigarette habit just might.

A Hormone Under Suspicion

Earlier research that condemned animal protein leaned heavily on the IGF-1 theory. The logic was straightforward: animal meat elevates IGF-1 levels, and higher IGF-1 has been linked with certain cancers. Case closed.

Except it was not. The new study points out that IGF-1 is a slippery suspect. Its connection with cancer risk has not held up consistently, and hormone levels alone are not reliable markers for predicting chronic disease. In fact, the relationship between IGF-1 and age-related illnesses is “nonlinear”, meaning more or less of it does not straightforwardly equal more or less disease.

The Fine Print

Of course, no study is without caveats. The researchers drew on NHANES III survey data from 1988 to 1994, looking at adults aged 19 and older. That means their conclusions were based on dietary recall rather than direct biological measurements. They admit more nuanced research, particularly using biomarkers, is needed to fully understand how different proteins affect long-term health.

The Bigger Picture on Meat

Animal protein may carry nutrients plant sources cannot easily replace — vitamin B12, for one. But the real problem of the meat world may not be the protein itself but the processing. Sausages, salami, and other highly processed meats are often loaded with saturated fat and sodium, which have well-documented links to heart disease and hypertension.

What It Means for Your Plate

This research does not suggest that plant protein is useless or that meat is suddenly a superfood. What it does say is that protein, whether from plants or animals, may not be the health battleground we have been led to believe. The real key might be balance, along with lifestyle choices that science repeatedly confirms matter most: staying active, not smoking, and eating a varied diet.