Pay-what-you-can cafes and heart health in people with high blood pressure and food insecurity

Who could benefit from this research

What this research studies

This study looks at two pay-what-you-can cafes in Texas and follows hypertensive, food-insecure guests over time to see how cafe use affects blood pressure and other heart- disease related measures. Researchers will compare cafe guests to similar people at a control location without a cafe, using a natural-experiment design and collecting both numbers and stories. A mixed-methods process evaluation will describe how cafes influence health outcomes and what works best to support CHD risk reduction. The project aims to generate evidence on whether charitable food programs can contribute to better cardiovascular health and quality of life for this population.

Why it matters

Where this research is happening

• Texas A&m Agrilife Research
  College Station, United States Active

Researchers

• Principal investigator: Macmillan Uribe, Alexandra L — Texas A&m Agrilife Research
• Study coordinator: Macmillan Uribe, Alexandra L

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About this research

1. This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
2. Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
3. For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.