Making healthy food easier to get for adolescents in low-income urban neighborhoods
Official title: [R01] Prioritizing food systems interventions to reduce adolescents’ nutrition insecurity and malnutrition in low-income settings
Funded at Rutgers Biomedical and Health Sciences · NIH-11373820 · Data updated 2026-11-12
Researchers will work with teenagers, families, and communities to find practical ways to make healthy food more available and affordable for adolescents in low-income urban areas.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Rutgers Biomedical and Health Sciences NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Newark, UNITED STATES) |
| Project start | September 1, 2024 |
| Project end | May 31, 2028 |
| Funding year | 2025 |
| Award (this year) | $63,896 |
| NIH project number | 3R01HD113723-02S1 |
| Project ID | NIH-11373820 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Ideal participants are adolescents (about 12–20 years old) living in informal or formal urban settlements in Nairobi, Kenya, and their caregivers or community members involved in food access.
✕Less likely to help
People outside Nairobi, adults without adolescent dependents, or individuals whose nutrition issues stem from medical conditions rather than food access may not benefit directly.
What this research studies
This project works with adolescents, households, and community leaders in Nairobi, Kenya, to map how local food systems shape what teens eat. Using participatory systems-thinking workshops, surveys, and local data, the team will identify barriers and opportunities for improving food access in informal and formal settlements. They will combine these insights with quantitative measurements and computer models to predict which changes could reduce both undernutrition and obesity among adolescents. The approach centers adolescents' real experiences to design actions that fit local needs.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, the work could guide programs and policies that make healthy food easier and cheaper for teens, lowering both undernutrition and obesity.
How similar studies have gone: Some community food-access programs have improved diets locally, but using youth-led systems thinking combined with modeling is a newer approach with limited prior testing.
Where this research is happening
-
Rutgers Biomedical and Health Sciences
Newark, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Downs, Shauna — Rutgers Biomedical and Health Sciences
- Study coordinator: Downs, Shauna
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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.