The DASH diet emphasizes fruits, vegetables, and low-fat dairy products, and it is low in total and saturated fat. A previous study has shown that this diet lowers blood pressure in people with and without hypertension. The current study extends the previous one by showing that the restriction of sodium intake, in addition to the DASH diet, further lowers systolic and diastolic blood pressure. The effect is greater in people with hypertension than in those without hypertension.
Dietary change is an important initial approach to the treatment and prevention of hypertension.
This study provides an important advance in the dietary treatment of hypertension by showing the benefit of restricting sodium intake, in conjunction with the DASH diet, for the control of blood pressure. In 12 of these 14 patients, the strains in the bloodstream were identical to those documented earlier in the nares. Hence, in most cases of S. aureus bacteremia, the source of the organisms appears to be endogenous. The data from this study provide strong support for the anterior nares as the source of S. aureus leading to bacteremia. Thus, strategies to prevent systemic infections in high-risk patients by the elimination of nasal carriage of S. aureus could be worthwhile.