Engaging Latina Females and Community Partners to Pilot Test and Optimize Medically Supportive Groceries

Area of Science:

• Nutrition Science
• Public Health
• Health Disparities

Background:

• Food insecurity and diet-related chronic diseases disproportionately impact Latina females.
• Food is Medicine (FIM) interventions show promise for addressing these dual challenges.
• Limited evidence exists to guide FIM practices specifically for Latina females.

Purpose of the Study:

• To test the acceptability and feasibility of medically supportive groceries for Latina females.
• To assess the preliminary effectiveness of this Food is Medicine intervention.
• To engage Latina females and community partners in intervention development.

Main Methods:

• 25 food-insecure Latina females at risk for chronic disease received 8 weekly home deliveries of medically supportive groceries.
• Semistructured interviews and surveys were used for data collection at baseline and 8-week follow-up.
• Inductive thematic analysis of interviews and statistical tests for food security and dietary intake changes.

Main Results:

• High feasibility with 100% delivery success and cultural acceptability reported.
• Significant reduction in food insecurity from 92% at baseline to 59% at follow-up (P=0.016).
• No significant change in daily fruit and vegetable intake (P=0.7).

Conclusions:

• Medically supportive groceries are a feasible and acceptable component of Food is Medicine interventions for Latina females.
• This approach can support comprehensive FIM interventions in diverse populations facing food insecurity and chronic disease.
• Findings highlight the potential for tailored FIM strategies to address health disparities.