Easier access to healthier meals at neighborhood restaurants
Systems Science Approaches to Improve Access to Healthier Foods: The FRESH Trial
This project works with locally owned restaurants to create and promote healthier entrees, sides, and drinks so regular customers in low-income urban neighborhoods can eat better and lower their cancer risk.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Johns Hopkins University NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Baltimore, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11144928 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
We partner with independently owned restaurants in Baltimore to change food preparation, sourcing, and how healthier options are marketed to customers. The team trains cooks, helps restaurants procure healthier ingredients, and updates menus and promotions to highlight better choices. Researchers will track sales, customer purchases, and health-related outcomes among regular patrons over time. They will also build a computer model that lets communities test how different restaurant strategies might affect diet and health in their neighborhoods.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: Ideal participants are adults who regularly eat at participating independently owned restaurants in low-income urban neighborhoods, such as areas of Baltimore.
Not a fit: People who rarely eat at the targeted restaurants, live outside the intervention neighborhoods, or require specialized medical diets may not receive direct benefit from this project.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this could make healthier meals easier to find and choose in neighborhood restaurants, improving diet quality and reducing cancer risk for local residents.
How similar studies have performed: Earlier work with similar restaurant interventions by this team increased sales and purchases of promoted healthier foods, indicating promising prior results.
Where this research is happening
Baltimore, United States
- Johns Hopkins University — Baltimore, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Gittelsohn, Joel — Johns Hopkins University
- Study coordinator: Gittelsohn, Joel
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.