Food is Medicine (FIM) interventions are in the national spotlight as a tool for preventing and treating chronic diseases and improving health equity. The White House National Strategy on Hunger, Nutrition, and Health called for the integration of nutrition and health care including increasing access to nutrition services to better prevent, manage and treat diet-related diseases.

A key strategy to meet this goal is to expand access to and coverage for FIM efforts (i.e., integration of food-based interventions and programs into health care to treat disease and advance health equity in specific populations). As food and nutrition experts, registered dietitian nutritionists are integral to FIM programs. RDNs and NDTRs can play critical roles in advancing FIM efforts by building the evidence base, communicating the impact and effectiveness of interventions and advocating for policies that support equitable and large-scale implementation.

This session features a panel of RDNs who are advancing FIM efforts through research, policy and practice. The panel reviews recent research, practices, innovations, challenges and opportunities for FIM; discuss opportunities to improve health equity through FIM efforts; and highlight how RDNs and NDTRs can be at the forefront of and demonstrate leadership in advancing FIM.