Giving Healthy Meal Kits and Cooking Lessons to Rural Families with Food Insecurity.

Launched by MAINEHEALTH · Mar 5, 2025

Keywords

ClinConnect Summary

This clinical trial is studying whether providing healthy meal kits and cooking lessons can help families in rural Maine who struggle with food insecurity. Food insecurity means not having enough food to eat, which can affect both children and their caregivers emotionally and socially. The trial will explore if families find it acceptable to receive these meal kits at home, whether the meal kits improve their diet and overall well-being, and if they help reduce stress and conflict in the home.

To participate, you need to be at least 18 years old and a legal caregiver for a child aged 6-12 who lives with you most of the time. You must live in a designated rural area in Maine and have experienced food insufficiency in the past month. If you join, you will receive a meal kit with 10 healthy meals each week for four weeks, and you'll also have access to a cooking education app. At the beginning and end of the study, you'll attend a virtual visit to discuss your experience. This trial is not yet recruiting participants, but it aims to help improve the lives of families facing food challenges in rural areas.

Gender

ALL

Eligibility criteria

• Inclusion Criteria:
• • 18 years of age or older.
• • Legal caregiver for a child between the ages of 6-12 with whom they live at least 75% of the time.
• • Reside in rural county in Maine as designated by the Health Resources and Services Administration.
• • Endorse food insufficiency within the past month on their screening questionnaire.
• • Able to speak and read in English.
• • Stable address with the ability to receive packages
• Exclusion Criteria:
• • Inadequate access (\<5 days/week) to a kitchen with refrigeration and heating elements to prepare meals.
• • Food-restrictive diet (i.e., veganism, gluten-free, dialysis-dependent, severe heart failure).
• • A household member with any anaphylactic food allergy.
• • No access to a smartphone with texting capabilities.