Neighborhoods and health across life: Early-life food security, diet quality, and chemical exposures
Official title: Neighborhoods and health across the life course: Early life food security, diet quality, and chemical exposures
Funded at Harvard Pilgrim Health Care, INC. · NIH-11362694 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This grant explores how early-life food insecurity, diet quality, and chemical exposures affect heart and blood vessel health across life for people from pregnancy through adulthood.
Quick facts
| Grant type | NIH-funded research |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Harvard Pilgrim Health Care, INC. NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Canton, UNITED STATES) |
| Project start | September 1, 2023 |
| Project end | May 31, 2030 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $2,759,408 |
| NIH project number | 5UH3OD035533-04 |
| Project ID | NIH-11362694 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Pregnant people and children experiencing or at risk of food insecurity, and their families, who are followed into adulthood.
✕Less likely to help
Individuals without exposure concerns or who are not in the studied demographics may not experience direct changes from this research.
What this research studies
The project looks at how where someone lives and the foods they can access during early life influence long-term cardiovascular health, considering exposure to chemicals in food and packaging. It follows people over time to see how prenatal and early-life nutrition relate to problems like high blood pressure, diabetes risk, and growth patterns. Researchers will combine data on diets, household security, and environmental exposures to identify factors that may worsen or improve cardiovascular outcomes. The goal is to inform policies and programs that promote healthy eating environments and safer food systems for families.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, findings could guide interventions to reduce heart disease risk by improving early-life nutrition and reducing harmful chemical exposures.
How similar studies have gone: Previous work shows links between early nutrition, inflammatory diets, and cardiovascular risk, suggesting a promising but complex path for this approach.
Where this research is happening
-
Harvard Pilgrim Health Care, INC.
Canton, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Oken, Emily — Harvard Pilgrim Health Care, INC.
- Study coordinator: Oken, Emily
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.