Effect of the DASH diet on metabolic syndrome and lipid profiles in adolescents: a randomized cross-over clinical trial

The DASH diet may have beneficial effects for management of metabolic syndrome (MetS) in adolescents. This study assessed the effect of the DASH diet on MetS in adolescents. In this randomized cross-over clinical trial، 60 post-pubescent adolescent girls with MetS were randomly assigned to two groups، one that followed the DASH diet and one that followed usual dietary recommendations (UR) for 6 wk. After a 4-wk washout period، participants were crossed-over to the alternate arm. Serum vitamin C levels were significantly higher in the DASH phase than the UR phase (86. 0 ± 10. 4 and 66. 3 ± 7. 6 ng/dL، respectively، p = 0. 06). Changes in weight، waist circumference، and BMI were not significantly different between the two intervention phases. Although changes in systolic blood pressure were not statistically significant between the two diets (p = 0. 13)، consumption of the DASH diet prevented an increase in diastolic blood pressure over that of the UR group (p = 0. 01). Adherence to the DASH diet resulted in a significant decrease in serum insulin levels compared to those of the UR plan (14. 6 ± 0. 9 and 13. 1 ± 0. 8 respectively، p = 0. 04). Compared with the UR، the DASH group experienced a significant decrease in the prevalence of MetS and high blood pressure. Results of adherence to the DASH eating pattern for 6 wk by adolescent girls with MetS indicate that it is a promising method of controlling MetS. The results suggest that it prevented the increase of diastolic blood pressure، decreased the prevalence of MetS، and improved the quality of the subjects’ diets.