Integrative Nutrition and Health Models Targeting Low-Income Populations: A Pilot Intervention in Three Food Banks

Adolescent-Reported Food Insecurity: Correlates of Dietary Intake and School Lunch Behavior

“…Innovative partnerships between food resource organizations and schools and/or health services settings may facilitate access to foods, as well as facilitate more nuanced conversations between providers, youth and families to prioritize nutrient density whenever possible, while also allowing for economy of food purchases. For example, integrative nutrition and health programs, in which food distribution programs form community partnerships, using schools as community hubs, to provide nutrition education, health screenings, and opportunities for physical activity represent innovations in food safety net programming [ 47 ]. In these programs, food is distributed in a ratio of 3:1, produce to shelf-stable goods [ 47 ].…”

“…For example, integrative nutrition and health programs, in which food distribution programs form community partnerships, using schools as community hubs, to provide nutrition education, health screenings, and opportunities for physical activity represent innovations in food safety net programming [ 47 ]. In these programs, food is distributed in a ratio of 3:1, produce to shelf-stable goods [ 47 ]. In addition, intervention research should assess the feasibility of clinical care models in which a team of advocates (e.g., nutrition specialist, social work, and community health worker) is accessible to strategize with families as they work to maximize food resources within their control.…”

The hunger-obesity paradox: Exploring food banking system characteristics and obesity inequities among food-insecure pantry clients

“…To date, health-related research on attitudes and social dynamics between system leaders and clients has mainly focused on leaders at the pantry-level (e.g., staff, volunteers) [61,62], clients' coping strategies [60,63] and developing client-choice pantries or nutrition interventions [36,61,62,64,65]. Fewer studies have considered attitudes and behaviors among upstream actors, such as donors and food bank directors, as the current study has done [30,53,56,64,66]. Our results point to several social and interpersonal challenges between system leaders and clients that potentially create and maintain disparate obesity risks in the target population including: (a) stereotypes; (b) language barriers; (c) mistrust in communities of color; (d) lack of diversity/representation among system leaders; and (e) access to information as a privilege.…”

“…of equity-oriented obesity prevention strategies [49]. Inspired by a growing recognition of the substantial impact that the food banking system can have on obesity and obesity-related illnesses, many new policies have been introduced (i.e., Foodbank of Central New York's "no soda, no candy" policy) and there have been several organizational changes (e.g., inventory tracking systems) [53,54,61,64,65,[68][69][70][71]. Key findings from the present study link unhealthy food donations in the food banking system to imbalanced power between food banks and donors.…”

“…Food banking system leaders will also need to expand and enhance strategic partnerships, particularly in communities that have been underserved historically. For example, Feeding America and Morgan Stanley collaborated on the Healthy Cities Project from August 2014 to May 2015 [64]. This initiative focused on creating strategic partnerships between three food bank sites (i.e., Alameda County Community Food Bank in Oakland, CA; the Greater Chicago Food Depository in Chicago, IL; the Community Food Bank of New Jersey in Newark) and neighboring school-based community programs in low-income areas that offer health-promoting resources like nutrient-dense foods.…”