Food as Medicine (FAM) interventions encompass a spectrum of food-based programs that address food and nutrition security by improving access to healthy food and providing nutrition education. These programs often involve partnerships between healthcare and community-based organizations (e.g., food banks), creating opportunities for Registered Dietitian Nutritionists (RDNs) to lead across clinical and community settings.

The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics FAM Strategic Roadmap emphasizes the critical role of RDNs in designing and implementing FAM programs to promote health and prevent and/or treat chronic diet-related disease. A key aspect of RDN involvement is individualized or group-based nutrition education. Although many FAM programs integrate nutrition education, there is limited consensus on best practices for educational format and how to integrate RDNs to achieve the greatest impact on participant health.

This interactive session addresses this gap by convening a multidisciplinary panel of experts spanning FAM program implementation to program evaluation. RDNs engaged in practice and research will share insights from a national initiative including 21 healthcare-food bank partner FAM programs, highlighting differences in health outcomes among participants of programs with and without robust nutrition education. The panel will discuss actionable strategies for RDNs to design supportive programs that maximize nutrition and health outcomes.