The cost of food, such as produce, is most common hurdles For healthy diets of low-income or no-income people receiving federal nutritional assistance, according to a 2018 U.S. Department of Agriculture study. But just $10 and 10 pounds of produce a week can make a big difference in your kids’ diets. more recent research Led by Dell College of Medicine factor health.
Devin Istre, a single mother in Austin, Michael & Susan Dell FoundationHer two children, ages 12 and 13, ate butternut squash, zucchini, turnips and dragon fruit for the first time. The Istre reported that the turnip was not hit. “But at least they tried them,” she says with a laugh.
A Factor Health study aimed to assess the dietary impact of offering families free produce tastings and gift cards that allow them to buy anything they want at the grocery store. Each week for 4 weeks, caregivers Boys & Girls Clubs in Austin Area I received a 10 pound box of fruits and vegetables and $10 to use at the local store.
The results were astonishing. Not only did the participating children eat two more servings of healthy food per day than the control group, but the changes continued after the program ended.
“Our research team confirmed that the children’s consumption of produce increased and, importantly, they continued to eat healthy during the 4-week follow-up period after the programme. ”, he said. Manninder “Mini” CarlonPh.D., Director and Founder of Factor Health, founded in 2019 with a founding grant from Houston-based Factor Health Episcopal Health Foundation“This is especially notable given that the caregiver did not have to use the gift card to purchase health food.”
proof of payer
The Factor Health team tests preventive and nonclinical treatments, scales them up, and encourages payers (e.g., health insurance providers, Medicaid, Medicare, etc.) to cover them, often We partner with community-based organizations. Austin’s study is one of Factor Health’s ongoing in Texas investigating how improved access to healthy foods affects health.
The obvious question: Did we already know that dieting can improve health? Yes, says Kahlon, but it’s not that simple. Most health insurance in the US is sponsored by employersand the Average number of years a worker has been with an employer Only four. So it can literally be difficult to market a means to improve your long-term health. “Proposing a five-year project to someone whose business cycle is less than two years, no matter how intellectually appealing it may be, will not serve their bottom line.” Life changes are a virtuous cycle, says Carlon. are often accompanied by negative side effects.”
Tackling Chronic Kidney Disease in Houston
In Houston, Factor Health has partnered with the county’s Harris Health System to encourage people with early-to-moderate chronic kidney disease to begin a diet high in produce.
Dr. Esperanza “Hope” Galvan is the interim senior vice president of Harris Health. At Harris Health, dialysis is an expensive solution for her more than 5,000 patients treating end-stage and end-stage renal disease. “As a healthcare system, we are fully aware of the importance of a healthy, balanced diet for disease prevention and progression. We also know that access is a challenge,” she says. It helps you understand.
“Prevention is the name of the game.”
Treating Gestational Diabetes in the Rio Grande Valley
In the Rio Grande Valley, which straddles the tip of Texas on the Mexican border, about 15% of pregnant women develop gestational diabetes, well above the national average of 9%. There, another safety net provider, the Driscoll Health Plan, has partnered with Factor Health to provide nutritional support for pregnant women at high risk of illness.
Karl Serrao, MD, is Chief Medical Officer for Driscoll Health. He says the collaboration has accelerated the pace of his Driscoll Health food-based intervention, bringing academic rigor to planning and evaluation critical in understanding how well it works. This is a high-risk experiment, he says. “When we’re caring for an expectant mom, we’re essentially caring for multiple people, right? We care about the present and the future.”
Back in Austin, Istre, a single mother, is more occupied with mundane things. “Being low-income…the ability to try things without spending extra money helps, but it also helps put food on the table,” Carlon notes as she says. .
