Fresh produce and hands-on nutrition program for elementary children and their families in Acres Homes
Research Project #1
This program gives elementary-school children and their parents regular boxes of fresh produce, hands-on nutrition lessons, and app support to try to improve diet, weight, and metabolic health.
Quick facts
| Grant type | NIH-funded research |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | University of Tx Md Anderson Can Ctr NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Houston, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11362123 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
You and your child would attend one of 12 participating elementary schools in the Acres Homes community, where half the schools will offer the Brighter Bites program and half will be waitlisted. Families at intervention schools receive 16 distributions of 20–25 lbs of fresh produce to take home, recipe tastings, classroom nutrition education, and parent access to a mobile app over one school year with options to continue. The study will enroll about 720 parent-child pairs and measure height, weight, finger-stick HbA1c, blood pressure, diet questionnaires, and child skin carotenoids at baseline, about 9 months, and again at 21 months. Participation involves routine measurements at school and follow-up visits or contacts through the program.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: Ideal participants are elementary-school-aged children and their parents who attend one of the participating schools in the Acres Homes neighborhood and are willing to join the program and follow-up visits.
Not a fit: Families who do not attend a participating school, live outside the Acres Homes area, or cannot take part in the distributions and follow-up visits are unlikely to receive benefit from this program.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, the program could improve healthy eating, reduce food insecurity, and lead to better weight and metabolic health for children and their parents in the community.
How similar studies have performed: Previous Brighter Bites work has successfully engaged parents and improved dietary behaviors and food security, but its effects on obesity and metabolic measures are not yet established.
Where this research is happening
Houston, United States
- University of Tx Md Anderson Can Ctr — Houston, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Sharma, Shreela V — University of Tx Md Anderson Can Ctr
- Study coordinator: Sharma, Shreela V
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.