LEXINGTON, Ky. (February 16, 2024) — The Food as Health Alliance (FAHA), based within the University of Kentucky Martin Gatton School of Agriculture, Food and the Environment, is supported by a grant from the American Heart Association (AHA). The UK is one of the first recipients of the AHA's Healthcare by Food Initiative Award.
The FAHA director will examine how user-centered design programs can improve screening, referral enrollment, and engagement in food and drug programs for adults who experience food insecurity and are diagnosed with hypertension. This grant is a key partnership between Instacart, Kroger Health with Soda Health, Mom's Meals and Food City, in collaboration with UK HealthCare and Appalachian Regional Healthcare.
FAHA brings together diverse healthcare, managed care, nonprofit, and industry collaborators to facilitate the screening, referral, and enrollment process. The goal is to identify the most appropriate and effective model in the short term, while also considering design elements for long-term sustainability and scalability. This initiative specifically targets individuals facing food insecurity and those with chronic health conditions that make them vulnerable to diet.
“We are honored to join the American Heart Association's Health Through Food initiative with so many respected researchers,” said Professor Gustafson. “We look forward to working with our partners across the state to improve screening, referral and enrollment practices to improve patient outcomes.”
Gustafson is partnering with Instacart, Mom's Meals and Food City to help develop infrastructure for patients receiving meals as part of a medical program in a pilot project underway across Kentucky. Currently, the team is working with key organizations in Kentucky to develop a Referral Hub for Health-Related Social Needs (HRSB).
Kevin G. Volup, M.D., Ph.D., of the association's health division, said, “Working with institutions across the country and integrating research efforts will help improve health and make healthy foods an essential component of health care.” “Foods that are highly effective will help identify medicinal interventions.” Principal Investigator of the Care by Food Initiative, Chair of the Food Is Medicine Association Presidential Recommendation Writing Group, and Director of the Center for Health Incentives and Behavioral Economics at the University of Pennsylvania.
FAHA aims to integrate clinical and community research across agriculture, food, health care, and nutrition to address food insecurity and diet-related chronic diseases. Researchers, community partners, food producers, healthcare partners, and students will explore innovative strategies to improve clinical outcomes for patients and the health of Kentuckians.
“This award recognizes the significant work already undertaken by the Food as Health Alliance to address inequities associated with food insecurity and chronic disease across Kentucky,” said John F., assistant professor at UK College of Medicine. said co-researcher Carolyn Lauchner. She will serve as principal investigator on the grant alongside Gustafson.
“This grant represents an investment in our efforts to target the link between food insecurity and cardiovascular disease and use food as medicine to improve the health of individuals,” said Lauchner. Ta. “I am excited to work with this outstanding group of scholars and practitioners who are committed to leveraging innovative research methods in partnership with their communities to improve the health of all Kentuckians. ”
For more information about FAHA, visit https://foodashealthalliance.ca.uky.edu. For more information about the American Heart Association's Food-Based Healthcare Initiative, visit https://healthcarexfood.org.
This research was supported by American Heart Association grant #24FIM1255467/Alison Gustafson/2024.
