THE LOW-PRESSURE DIET

As a group, nobody has lower blood pressure than vegetarians. But until now, scientists could only guess at what the reasons might be. Was it the absence of artery-clogging fat in their diet or something in the tofu that made their blood flow so smoothly? More to the point, is it possible for ordinary meat eaters with hypertension to reduce their blood pressure without going entirely macrobiotic?

The answer, it turns out, is yes. A study of 459 adults published last week in the New England Journal of Medicine showed for the first time that a diet that is low in...