newjerseynewsroom.com

BY BOB HOLT

NEWJERSEYNEWSROOM.COM

The holidays are quickly approaching, and experts have come out with a list of the best diets for 2011, in regards to health benefits.

US News & World Report has placed the DASH Diet as number one on their top twenty list of healthiest diets, calling it the "healthiest diet" and the "best diet overall."

According to dashdiet.org, the DASH (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) Diet helps to lower blood pressure and cholesterol; and has helped to lower the risk of some cancers, heart disease, stroke, heart failure, kidney stones, diabetes, and osteoporosis.

The DASH diet is rich in fruits, vegetables, and includes grains, lean meats, fish and poultry; nuts and beans. It also is found to lower cholesterol. The diet lowers blood pressure by adding nutrients that are associated with low blood pressure, like potassium, calcium, and magnesium.

Webmd.com reports that five diets received ''best'' ratings for healthy eating from the magazine’s list, others including the TLC (Therapeutic Lifestyle Changes), the Mediterranean Diet, the Mayo Clinic Diet, and the Volumetrics Diet. Weight Watchers, Jenny Craig, and Nutrisystem, were also rated highly.

At the bottom of the list, U.S. News experts said the Paleo Diet, No. 18, was somewhat unsafe, and only somewhat complete nutritionally. No. 19, the Raw Food Diet, said its nutrition was also lacking, and its raw or undercooked ingredients left a serious risk of food poisoning. And No. 20, the Atkins Diet, was said to contain way too much fat and not enough carbohydrates.

According to the International Business Times, the Dash diet has been endorsed by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute and the American Heart Association.

It has also shown to lower blood pressure in 14 days, and stays within the government’s recommended fat intake of 20 to 35 percent of a day’s calories.

Here is the complete US News and World Report list, based on a score of 1.0 to 5.0:

1.) DASH Diet, 4.8.

2.) TLC Diet, 4.7.

3.) Mediterranean Diet, 4.6.

4.) Mayo Clinic Diet, 4.5.

5.) Volumetrics Diet, 4.5

6.) Weight Watchers, 4.4.

7.) Jenny Craig Diet, 4.3.

8.) Ornish Diet, 4.1.

9.) Vegetarian Diet, 4.

10.) Nutrisystem Diet, 3.9.

11.) Glycemic-Index Diet, 3.5.

12.) SlimFast Diet, 3.5.

13.) Zone Diet, 3.5.

14.) South Beach Diet, 3.3.

15.) Eco-Atkins Diet, 3.1.

16.) Medifast Diet, 3.0.

17.) Vegan Diet, 3.0.

18.) Paleo Diet, 2.2.

19.) Raw Food Diet, 2.1.

20.) Atkins Diet, 2.0.