Project Open Hand Launches Magazine Focusing on Medically Tailored Meals and the Food is Medicine Movement
SAN FRANCISCO, February 27, 2024 (Newswire.com) - Today, Bay Area nonprofit Project Open Hand announced its first-ever magazine publication, trEATment Magazine. In partnership with Ceres Community Project in Sonoma, the new publication provides an in-depth look at the effectiveness of medically tailored nutrition in treating and preventing chronic health conditions, as well as the Food is Medicine movement on a state and national level.
Medically tailored meals, a key component of the Food is Medicine movement, are specifically formulated to help meet the needs of people living with critical health conditions like HIV/AIDS, cancer, and heart disease.
The new publication, which highlights why medically tailored nutrition is necessary in the healthcare continuum, is intended to reach and educate healthcare professionals, government officials, and those interested in the improved management and prevention of chronic health conditions.
In recent years, the idea of food as medicine has become increasingly popular as a cost-effective healthcare solution in the public arena. A 2022 economic evaluation published in the Journal of American Medical Association found that the national implementation of medically tailored meals could net $13.6 billion in annual savings for Medicaid and Medicare. This January, the Department of Health and Human Services hosted its first-ever Food is Medicine Summit, declaring that “facilitating access to healthy food across the health continuum in the community” will be a key guiding principle for the Department’s services in the future.
As American Heart Month ends and National Nutrition Month begins, the first issue of trEATment Magazine focuses on the promising approaches to the improved management and treatment of heart disease through medically tailored nutrition.
“Despite heart disease being a leading cause of death in America,” says a welcome letter from the trEATment Editorial Board in the new magazine, “it is still relatively rare in medicine for diet and nutrition to be cited as a serious, first-line intervention to address risk factors.”
The issue reviews recent research exploring cardiovascular disease and the use of medically tailored meals, including patients with CVD risk factors such as diabetes and high blood pressure.
“We hope that this issue encourages people to learn more about the role of medically tailored meals and to support their continued integration into our healthcare,” says Paul Hepfer, Project Open Hand CEO.
Published twice annually, trEATment Magazine will feature a range of contributors and changemakers from the Food is Medicine movement. Each issue will focus on a singular health condition and concentrate on the vital role nutrition can play in its treatment and prevention.
To read the inaugural issue of trEATment Magazine, or for more information on hard copies, visit www.openhand.org/treatment-magazine.
###
About Project Open Hand
Since 1985, Project Open Hand has provided meals with love to older adults, adults with disabilities, and those living with complex, chronic health conditions like HIV/AIDS, cancer, and heart disease. Each year, Project Open Hand serves nearly a million meals to clients across San Francisco, Alameda, and Contra Costa counties.
Source: Project Open Hand
