Key Points
The purpose of this highlighted topic is to encourage innovative multidisciplinary, multidomain research to advance Food Is Medicine (FIM) programs to prevent and address diet-related chronic diseases (DRCD) and associated health disparities across the lifespan, including cardiovascular disease, diabetes, obesity, some cancers, and mental health disorders. We seek innovative research ideas that advance the knowledge base of FIM interventions through high-quality rigorous research focused on the measurement of clinical and health outcomes within well-designed programs.
FIM Opportunities
High-priority research topics include but are not limited to:
- Clinical trials examining FIM approaches with other multidomain interventions (clinical services, food environment) to improve diet quality and address DRCD in all populations, including those with disabilities
- Behavioral, pragmatic, and implementation trials focused on the efficacy of FIM-based health care economics, services, and approaches to prevent chronic diseases
- Study designs that include innovative multicomponent and multilevel interventions
- Studies that aim to develop and validate biomarkers of physiological responses to dietary intake and relationship to disease risk within the context of FIM programs
- Studies that assess the economic impact, return on investment, cost, and cost-effectiveness of different FIM interventions and programs
- Studies examining the role of FIM services in facilitating food access, diet-related malnutrition, and certain chronic conditions
- Studies that identify and validate evaluation metrics that can effectively measure the effects of FIM interventions on different health outcomes and conditions
- Studies using FIM programs to improve quality of life, behavioral and mental health, and community resilience supported by data on intervention effectiveness beyond clinical endpoints, including measures of quality of life and behavioral or mental health outcomes
- Training programs and fellowships for health care professionals that expand evidence-based culinary medicine and teaching kitchen programs
- Assessments to identify high-risk populations and interventions to provide FIM services, including medically tailored meals or groceries, nutritious food recommendations, and produce prescriptions
- Studies assessing interactions between the physical environment and food systems in the context of FIM interventions
- Studies that partner, engage, and communicate with communities to improve health and prevent/reduce diet-related diseases
- Secondary analyses that leverage existing datasets and databases to evaluate the impact of FIM interventions on health outcomes and health care utilization costs
