Delivering Food Resources and Kitchen Skills (FoRKS) to Adults with Food Insecurity and Hypertension: A Pilot Study.

Food insecurity affects nearly 50 million Americans and is linked to cardiovascular disease risk factors and health disparities. The purpose of this single-arm pilot study was to determine the feasibility of a 16-week dietitian-led lifestyle intervention to concurrently address food access, nutrition literacy, cooking skills, and hypertension among safety-net primary care adult patients. The Food Resources and Kitchen Skills (FoRKS) intervention provided nutrition education and support for hypertension self-management, group kitchen skills and cooking classes from a health center teaching kitchen, medically tailored home-delivered meals and meal kits, and a kitchen toolkit.

A Randomized Intervention of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program-Education Did Not Improve Dietary Outcomes Except for Vitamin D Among Lower-Income Women in Indiana.

Background: The goal of US Department of Agriculture Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program-Education (SNAP-Ed) is to improve the likelihood that those eligible for SNAP will make healthy choices aligned with the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2020-2025.

Objective: The objective of the study was to evaluate the long-term effects of a direct SNAP-Ed intervention in which participants actively engage in learning with educator instruction about dietary quality and usual intake of key nutrient and food groups among Indiana SNAP-Ed-eligible women participants as an example sample in the context of no similar existing evaluation.

Design: The study design was a parallel-arm, randomized controlled, nutrition education intervention, with follow-up at 1 year.

Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program-Education Improves Food Security Independent of Food Assistance and Program Characteristics.

The purpose of this project was to determine whether consistent food assistance program participation or changes in participation over time mediated or moderated the effect of federal nutrition education through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program-Education (SNAP-Ed) on food security and determine the associations of SNAP-Ed program delivery characteristics with change in food security. This secondary analysis used data from a randomized controlled trial from September 2013 through April 2015. SNAP-Ed-eligible participants ( = 328; ≥18 years) in households with children were recruited from 39 counties in Indiana, USA.

Dietary Quality and Usual Intake of Underconsumed Nutrients and Related Food Groups Differ by Food Security Status for Rural, Midwestern Food Pantry Clients.

Background: Food pantry users represent a predominantly food insecure population, yet dietary intake may differ among food secure (FS), low FS, and very low FS clients. Usual intake of food groups and nutrients by food security status has not previously been compared among food pantry clients.

Objective: This study aimed to estimate the usual intakes of underconsumed nutrients (ie, potassium; dietary fiber; choline; magnesium; calcium; vitamins A, D, E, and C; and iron) and related food groups (ie, vegetables, fruits, whole grains, and dairy) and dietary quality, and to evaluate their relationship with food security status.

Diet Quality and Associations with Food Security among Women Eligible for Indiana Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program-Education.

Background: The diet quality among adults receiving nutrition education lessons through Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program-Education (SNAP-Ed) is currently unknown.

Objectives: The objectives of this study were to characterize the diet quality of Indiana SNAP-Ed-eligible women; estimate their mean usual intake of fruits, vegetables, dairy, and whole grains compared to Dietary Guidelines for Americans (DGA) recommendations; and determine if these dietary outcomes differed by food security status.

Methods: SNAP-Ed paraprofessionals recruited participants from August 2015 to May 2016 for this secondary analysis of cross-sectional data collected as the baseline assessment for a randomized controlled trial.

Effect of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program-Education (SNAP-Ed) on food security and dietary outcomes.

The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program-Education (SNAP-Ed) is the nutrition promotion component of SNAP, formerly known as food stamps. SNAP-Ed assists low-income populations in the United States improve dietary intake and reduce food insecurity through nutrition education. This narrative review summarizes current investigations of SNAP-Ed's effectiveness at improving food security and dietary outcomes, and it can help inform future policy and implementation of the program.

Exploring the association of urban or rural county status and environmental, nutrition- and lifestyle-related resources with the efficacy of SNAP-Ed (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program-Education) to improve food security.

Objective: To investigate the association of policy, systems and environmental factors with improvement in household food security among low-income Indiana households with children after a Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program-Education (SNAP-Ed) direct nutrition education intervention.

Design: Household food security scores measured by the eighteen-item US Household Food Security Survey Module in a longitudinal randomized and controlled SNAP-Ed intervention study conducted from August 2013 to April 2015 were the response variable. Metrics to quantify environmental factors including classification of urban or rural county status; the number of SNAP-authorized stores, food pantries and recreational facilities; average fair market housing rental price; and natural amenity rank were collected from government websites and data sets covering the years 2012-2016 and used as covariates in mixed multiple linear regression modelling.

SNAP-Ed (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program-Education) Increases Long-Term Food Security among Indiana Households with Children in a Randomized Controlled Study.

Background: Food insecurity is negatively associated with US children's dietary intake and health. The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program-Education (SNAP-Ed) aims to alleviate food insecurity by offering nutrition, budgeting, and healthy lifestyle education to low-income individuals and families.

Objective: The objective of this study was to evaluate the long-term impact of the Indiana SNAP-Ed on food security among households with children.

The Macronutrients, Appetite, and Energy Intake.

Each of the macronutrients-carbohydrate, protein, and fat-has a unique set of properties that influences health, but all are a source of energy. The optimal balance of their contribution to the diet has been a long-standing matter of debate. Over the past half century, thinking has progressed regarding the mechanisms by which each macronutrient may contribute to energy balance.

The Effects of Increased Protein Intake on Fullness: A Meta-Analysis and Its Limitations.

Background: Higher protein intake has been implicated in weight management because of its appetitive properties. However, the effects of protein intake on appetitive sensations such as fullness have not been systematically assessed. Meta-analysis is a useful technique to evaluate evidence of an intervention's effect on testable outcomes, but it also has important limitations.

Ethnicity and acculturation: do they predict weight status in a longitudinal study among Asian, Hispanic, and non-Hispanic White early adolescent females?

Background: The prevalence of overweight and obesity among adolescents has increased over the past decade. Prevalence rates are disparate among certain racial and ethnic groups. This study sought to longitudinally examine the relationship between overweight status (≥85th percentile according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention growth charts) and ethnic group, as well as acculturation (generation and language spoken in the home) in a sample of adolescent females.

Attitudes and beliefs concerning sexual relationships among minority adolescent women.

Learning about one's sexuality is an important developmental task for the adolescent and has implications for a lifelong process of becoming a sexual being and reaching sexual maturity. Learning about intimacy in relationship with others is another important developmental task for the adolescent. The occurrence of interpersonal violence, particularly sexual, physical, or psychological violence, disrupts the development of intimacy which informs the process for becoming a sexual being.