Determining the association between grocery nutrition scores and number of medications taken for metabolic syndrome: A pilot study.

Background: Metabolic syndrome is a cluster of disease states that increases an individual's risk of developing diabetes or cardiovascular disease. When treating metabolic syndrome, lifestyle and diet are primary areas for interventions. A dietician-led grocery nutrition system scoring patients' purchases may correlate to better control of metabolic health.

Objective: To compare the number of medications taken for metabolic syndrome for patients with grocery nutrition scores at goal versus those below goal as pre-defined by the dietician team.

Practice Description: This exploratory, retrospective cohort pilot study took place in a single pharmacy within a large community pharmacy chain in Northwest Ohio.

Practice Innovation: This retrospective cohort study compared the number of medications taken for metabolic syndrome between two groups: patients with a grocery nutrition score at a dietician-set goal and patients not at goal.

Evaluation Methods: Data were collected from May 2022 to March 2023, with patients completing a questionnaire collecting information on demographics. In addition, the questionnaire, grocery nutrition scores, and patient medication records were collected. Descriptive statistics were calculated for demographic items. A number of medications taken for metabolic syndrome by patients at dietician-set grocery nutrition score goal and not at goal were compared using a Mann-Whitney U test.

Results: A total of 40 patients were enrolled in this study. There was not a significant difference in a number of medications taken for metabolic syndrome between groups, with patients who had a grocery nutrition score at goal taking an average of 1.20 medications compared to 1.96 for those with grocery nutrition scores below goal.

Conclusions: While no statistical difference in mean medication use was identified, grocery nutrition scores may help understand patients' dietary habits. Larger studies are required to test the relationship between grocery nutrition scores, patient-specific factors, and medications taken for metabolic syndrome.