Goal · Heart health

Food for a healthy heart: blood pressure and cholesterol

Eating patterns have the strongest heart evidence: DASH for blood pressure, Mediterranean for heart events, and soluble fiber from oats, barley or psyllium for cholesterol.

By the editors of Alimentotherapy Last reviewed October 18, 2026 3 min read Not medical advice

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The short answer

For blood pressure, the DASH eating pattern has some of the strongest evidence in nutrition: in a controlled feeding trial it lowered systolic pressure by 11.4 mm Hg more than a typical diet in people with high blood pressure, and cutting salt on top of it lowered pressure further Appel 1997; Sacks 2001. For cholesterol, the FDA allows a heart-health claim for soluble fiber from whole oats, barley and psyllium, at 3 g a day of oat or barley beta-glucan or 7 g of psyllium soluble fiber FDA.

Foods and herbs for heart health, graded

Every claim from our remedy pages that relates to heart health, strongest evidence first. Each row links to the full page and its sources.

Food or herb	Grade	What the research found
OatsLDL cholesterol	Strong	A meta-analysis of 28 trials found 3 g or more of oat beta-glucan a day lowered LDL cholesterol by 0.25 mmol/L (about 10 mg/dL) versus control, with no change in HDL or triglycerides. A larger analysis of 58 trials (3,974 people) found a similar, slightly smaller drop.
Oily fishHigh triglycerides	Strong	EPA and DHA reduce triglycerides by about 15 percent. Prescription omega-3 products are approved for very high triglycerides; in REDUCE-IT, a 4 g daily prescription EPA drug cut cardiovascular events in statin-treated patients with raised triglycerides.
PsylliumLDL cholesterol	Strong	Pooling 28 trials (1,924 people), a median of about 10.2 g a day lowered LDL cholesterol by 0.33 mmol/L (about 13 mg/dL), with falls in non-HDL cholesterol and apoB too. The FDA allows a labeling claim at 7 g of psyllium soluble fiber a day.
FlaxseedSlightly lower blood pressure	Moderate	Pooling 11 studies (14 trials) of at least two weeks, flaxseed lowered systolic pressure by 1.77 mm Hg and diastolic by 1.58 mm Hg. Diastolic effects were larger with whole seed and with 12 weeks or more.
GarlicBlood pressure in people with high blood pressure	Moderate	A meta-analysis of 20 trials (970 people) found garlic preparations lowered systolic pressure by about 5 mm Hg versus placebo, and by about 8.7 mm Hg in trials of people with hypertension.
Oily fishHeart health: eating seafood once or twice a week	Moderate	An AHA science advisory concluded that 1 to 2 seafood meals a week are worthwhile for heart health, especially when they replace less healthy foods. This rests mostly on observational studies, which cannot fully separate fish from a healthier overall lifestyle.
Apple cider vinegarCholesterol	Limited	The same meta-analysis found a small fall in total cholesterol (about 6 mg/dL) but no significant change in LDL or HDL cholesterol.
BeetrootLower blood pressure readings (short term)	Limited	Pooling 16 small crossover trials (254 people, lasting 2 hours to 15 days), nitrate or beetroot juice lowered systolic pressure by 4.4 mm Hg; the change in diastolic pressure was not significant.
BeetrootLower blood pressure over weeks	Limited	Across 13 trials of 1 to 6 weeks (325 people), nitrate lowered clinic readings by about 4 mm Hg systolic and 2 mm Hg diastolic, but there was no significant change on 24-hour ambulatory or home monitoring.
CinnamonCholesterol and triglycerides in type 2 diabetes	Limited	The same meta-analysis reported small drops in total and LDL cholesterol and triglycerides, from small trials with very different doses and products.
GarlicTotal cholesterol and triglycerides	Limited	Pooling 26 placebo-controlled trials, garlic lowered total cholesterol and triglycerides slightly but did not change LDL or HDL cholesterol. NCCIH calls the effect small.
Green teaLDL and total cholesterol	Limited	A meta-analysis of 14 trials (1,136 people) found green tea or its extract lowered total cholesterol by 7.2 mg/dL and LDL by 2.2 mg/dL. Most trials tested extracts rather than the drink, and a later analysis of tea beverages found no significant effect.
Green teaBlood pressure	Limited	Pooling 13 trials (1,367 people), green tea lowered systolic and diastolic pressure by about 2 mmHg. A 2020 analysis of short tea-drinking trials (4 to 24 weeks) found no significant effect.
Oily fishCoronary heart disease events	Limited	The Cochrane review found increasing EPA and DHA may slightly reduce coronary heart disease events and deaths, with low-certainty evidence.
FlaxseedRaising EPA and DHA (fish-type omega-3s)	Not supported	In a three-month trial, whole seed, milled seed and flax oil all failed to raise plasma EPA or DHA.
Oily fishFish oil capsules for people at usual risk	Not supported	In VITAL, 25,871 older US adults taking 1 g a day for a median 5.3 years had no fewer major cardiovascular events than with placebo. A Cochrane review of 86 trials found little or no effect on deaths or cardiovascular events overall.

Blood pressure: the DASH pattern and salt

DASH (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) is rich in fruit, vegetables and low-fat dairy and lower in saturated and total fat. In the original 1997 trial, where participants were given all their food, the combination diet lowered blood pressure by 5.5/3.0 mm Hg more than the control diet overall, and by 11.4/5.5 mm Hg in people who already had high blood pressure Appel 1997. The DASH-Sodium trial then showed that lowering salt reduced blood pressure on both diets, with the largest effect from DASH plus low sodium together Sacks 2001.

The NHLBI's DASH plan, for a 2,000-calorie day, works out to 4 to 5 servings each of vegetables and fruit, 6 to 8 of grains, 2 to 3 of low-fat dairy, 4 to 5 a week of nuts, seeds and beans, and no more than 2,300 mg of sodium, with 1,500 mg lowering blood pressure further NIH. Beetroot and garlic are often suggested for blood pressure; see their grades in the table on this page.

Cholesterol: soluble fiber from oats, barley and psyllium

The FDA's authorized health claim links diets low in saturated fat and cholesterol that include soluble fiber with a reduced risk of coronary heart disease. The qualifying amounts are 3 g or more a day of beta-glucan from whole oats or barley, or 7 g or more a day of soluble fiber from psyllium seed huskFDA. In practice that means a bowl of oatmeal plus other oat or barley foods across the day, or a measured dose of psyllium. Labels state the beta-glucan or soluble fiber per serving.

To see whether you are near those amounts, log a few typical days in a food diary such as Cronometer, which totals fiber per day; the free tier is enough.

The whole pattern matters more than any one food

The American Heart Association's 2021 guidance is about patterns: plenty of varied fruit and vegetables, whole grains, mostly plant proteins with regular fish and seafood, liquid plant oils instead of tropical oils and partially hydrogenated fats, minimally processed foods, little added sugar and salt, and not starting alcohol if you do not drink Lichtenstein 2021. In the PREDIMED trial, adults at high heart risk assigned to a Mediterranean diet with extra-virgin olive oil or nuts had fewer major cardiovascular events than the control group Estruch 2018. Oily fish fits both patterns.

How to try a change fairly

Blood pressure varies minute to minute, so measure at home at the same times of day for a week before and a month after a change, and take the average. For cholesterol, a lipid panel before and about three months after a change is the usual comparison. Never stop or reduce a prescribed blood pressure or cholesterol medicine because your numbers improved; ask your prescriber. And chest, jaw or back pain with heavy sweating is an emergency, not a diet question: call 911 MedlinePlus.

When to see a clinician, not the pantry

Chest pain, jaw pain, back pain, heavy sweating or a feeling of impending doom: these can be heart attack symptoms. Call 911.
Home blood pressure readings that stay high: share them with your clinician rather than relying on diet alone.
You take blood pressure, cholesterol or blood-thinning medicine and want to change your diet substantially: some foods interact (see interactions).

Common questions

How much does the DASH diet lower blood pressure?

In the original 1997 controlled feeding trial, the DASH combination diet lowered blood pressure by 5.5/3.0 mm Hg more than a typical American diet overall, and by 11.4/5.5 mm Hg in people with high blood pressure. Lowering sodium on top of DASH reduced it further in the DASH-Sodium trial.

How much oatmeal do you need to lower cholesterol?

The FDA's soluble fiber health claim requires 3 grams or more a day of beta-glucan from whole oats or barley, as part of a diet low in saturated fat and cholesterol. One bowl of oatmeal usually provides part of that, so most people need oat or barley foods more than once a day; check the beta-glucan per serving on the label.

Sources

Primary research and government sources, each checked on the date this page was reviewed.