Prioritizing food-system changes to help teens in low-income communities eat better
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-11378176 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This grant tests how to improve food access and choices for adolescents in low-income areas to prevent malnutrition and obesity.
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 | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $412,144 |
| NIH project number | 5R01HD113723-03 |
| Project ID | NIH-11378176 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Ideal candidates are adolescents aged 12-20 living in informal or formal urban settlements in LMICs who experience nutrition insecurity and related health concerns.
✕Less likely to help
Some adolescents may not experience direct benefits if they are not engaged in the local communities studied or if interventions take longer to implement.
What this research studies
This project works with teenagers in Nairobi’s urban settlements to understand how local food markets, services, and social factors shape what they eat. It uses a mix of participatory methods, real-world data, and modeling to map how different parts of the food system influence adolescents’ nutrition. The goal is to identify practical, community-informed actions that reduce nutrition insecurity and malnutrition among young people as they grow into adulthood. The research is led by Rutgers Biomedical and Health Sciences and partners with local communities to ensure interventions fit the lived experiences of adolescents.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, the work could lead to targeted strategies that improve teens’ access to healthy foods and reduce obesity and malnutrition in LMIC settings.
How similar studies have gone: Previous work suggests that community-informed, systems-based approaches can reveal actionable changes in food environments and adolescent nutrition.
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
Related research
Other NIH-funded projects on the same topics.
-
Azithromycin added to standard care for kids with severe malnutrition in Africa
This project tests whether giving azithromycin as an extra antibiotic to young children with uncomplicated severe acute malnutrition improves weight gain and recovery compared with amoxicillin or placebo.
-
Gut-Liver-Bone clues to growth problems in malnourished children
A study in malnourished children and a mouse model looks at how the gut, liver, and bone interact to cause growth faltering and tests a bile-acid therapy that could improve growth and reduce inflammation.
-
Azithromycin adjunct in kids with severe malnutrition in Africa
A randomized trial will compare azithromycin, amoxicillin, and placebo as adjunctive antibiotics for children with uncomplicated severe acute malnutrition to see which supports better weight gain and recovery.
-
Digital tools to fight adolescent malnutrition in schools (low-resource settings)
A school-based mobile health approach helps younger adolescents in low-resource areas improve nutrition and health behaviors.
-
How caregiver mental health affects recovery from severe malnutrition in young children
This project will track caregivers' depression and anxiety while their children get treatment for severe acute malnutrition to learn how caregiver mental health relates to child recovery and relapse.
-
Preventing Growth Problems in Poor Children by Treating Small Intestine Bacteria
A phase II effort in urban Bangladesh tests a treatment plan to stop growth failure and malnutrition in young children by addressing small intestinal bacterial overgrowth.
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.