nutrition

ACL’s Administration on Aging funds “Innovations in Nutrition” grants to support the quality, effectiveness, and outcomes of the nutrition programs funded through the Older Americans Act. The nutrition programs work to reduce food insecurity, hunger, and malnutrition; enhance socialization; and promote the health and well-being of older adults. This guest blog post features Innovations in Nutrition grantees as they describe how one project is helping build capacity within the aging network.

The Administration for Community Living (ACL) held a kick-off webinar for the second annual "Celebrate Our Senior Nutrition Program" in early February 2021. ACL shared details around the March celebration and the focus on the Older Americans Act's intent of nutrition, socialization, and health and well-being.

ACL awarded the $175 million for Nutrition Services and Native American Nutrition and Supportive Services to enhance ongoing community efforts begun with the support of previous COVID-19 supplemental appropriations.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, health risks and financial burdens for certain at-risk populations can make access to food challenging. This issue brief explores the adjustments that states have made to nutrition programs. The brief highlights examples of opportunities available and changes that states have made to ensure older adults and persons with disabilities have access to food during the pandemic. Data and findings are drawn from the ADvancing States 2020 COVID-19 Membership Survey.

This report looks at how federal agencies can better meet the nutritional needs of older adults. The study examines how older adults' nutrition is connected to health outcomes and the extent to which federal nutrition guidelines address older adults' nutritional needs. It also outlines the challenges program providers face in meeting older adults' nutritional needs. GAO makes a series of recommendations for HHS and USDA to improve federal nutrition assistance programs for this population.

The Journal of the American Geriatrics Society published an article looking at the link between diet and potential frailty in older age. Researchers pulled data from the Health, Aging, and Body Composition (Health ABC) Study and analyzed participants’ diets, activity, and shift between the categories of robust, pre-frail, and frail over four years.

This issue brief identifies key food sources of sodium, saturated fat, empty calories, and refined grains in the diets of congregate and home delivered meal participants. It also compares these key food sources for both participants and nonparticipants and explores differences between the two groups. Click here to read more about ACL's Nutrition

The purpose of this issue brief is to describe the types of foods that participants consumed as part of congregate and home delivered meals. The brief also examines differences between participants and nonparticipants in foods consumed over 24 hours

This brief is based on surveys of local service providers and participants at congregate meal sites. The brief examines whether the effect of congregate meal participation on socialization outcomes differs for participants who attend meal sites that offer social activities and those who attend meal sites that do not offer these activities.

This report assesses the effectiveness of the Title III-C Nutrition Services Program (NSP) under the Older Americans Act. It describes the health and health care utilization of congregate meal and home-delivered meal participants. The report also examines overall wellness measured using longer-term outcomes related to health and avoidance of institutionalization.