Adaptive food support to improve nutrition and health for pregnant people and their babies
Feasibility of an ADAPTive intervention to improve food security and Maternal-Child Health
This project tests a stepped approach that gives food help—like WIC referrals, produce vouchers, or tailored meals—to pregnant people with food insecurity to support their health and their babies' health.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Wake Forest University Health Sciences NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Winston-Salem, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11234306 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
If you join, you will be screened for food insecurity and, if eligible, randomly assigned to one of two first-stage food supports and may be moved to different supports later based on your needs. The team will use a Sequential Multiple Assignment Randomized Trial (SMART) design to learn which sequences of supports work best for different people. The pilot focuses on whether they can recruit and keep participants and whether the approach shows signs of improving food security and metabolic outcomes. Results will guide a larger trial and aim to create a flexible program that clinics can use.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: Pregnant people who are experiencing food insecurity and receive care at participating clinics (likely in the Wake Forest/Winston-Salem area) are the ideal candidates.
Not a fit: People who are not pregnant, who do not have food insecurity, or who cannot attend participating clinics are unlikely to benefit directly from this project.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this approach could help pregnant people get the right kind of food support at the right time, lowering risks like gestational diabetes and preterm birth.
How similar studies have performed: Individual supports such as WIC referrals, produce vouchers, and medically tailored meals have shown benefits in past work, but using an adaptive SMART approach during pregnancy is newer and less tested.
Where this research is happening
Winston-Salem, United States
- Wake Forest University Health Sciences — Winston-Salem, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Palakshappa, Deepak — Wake Forest University Health Sciences
- Study coordinator: Palakshappa, Deepak
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.