Study Finds Healthy Food Boxes May Reduce Weight and Blood Pressure Over Time

Sending people boxes of healthy foods may help them shed weight and bring down blood pressure, according to new research.

Adults who received plant-based grocery packages from a food pantry in the Boston area ended up with better overall health after years in the program, researchers reported in the October issue of Preventing Chronic Disease.

The weekly packages were designed to cover three meals a day for a full week and included fresh fruits and vegetables, canned beans, nut butter and whole grains, the researchers said.

“Our results suggest that plant-based food interventions are promising and, in the future, should focus on longer duration for improving cardiovascular and metabolic health,” senior researcher Dr. Lauren Fiechtner said in a news release. She is division chief of pediatric gastroenterology, hepatology and nutrition at Mass General Brigham for Children in Boston.

The study followed 68 adults enrolled in a “Food Is Medicine” program run through a Mass General Brigham community health center’s food bank.

Participants received an average of 97 plant-based food boxes over a little more than two and a half years. They were offered weekly food packages for as long as they wanted them.

Earlier research has suggested that providing healthy food to people with illness can help control conditions such as type 2 diabetes and high blood pressure, the researchers noted.

Most previous “Food Is Medicine” studies have focused on short-term effects, tracking people for weeks or months. The new study examined whether healthy food packages could affect long-term health after years of participation.

The findings showed that for every 100 food packages a person received, diastolic blood pressure fell by 3.2 points, body weight dropped by nearly 6 pounds, and body mass index, an estimate of body fat, declined by 1 point.

The program also lowered systolic blood pressure in patients who already had high blood pressure. Systolic blood pressure is the top number in a reading and reflects the force in the arteries when the heart beats.

People who requested more food packages saw even greater improvements, the researchers said.

“This paper has the potential to change the conversation about 'Food Is Medicine' interventions,” lead researcher Dr. Jacob Mirsky, a primary care physician at Mass General Brigham Revere Community Health Center, said in a news release.

“We are boldly advocating for high potency interventions that focus on frequent, high quality, high quantity food packages over long periods of time so that patients have the greatest chance of benefiting,” Mirsky said.

Sources

• Mass General Brigham, news release