Federal Grant Award Summary

Tufts University School of Medicine received a $838,493 Project Grant from the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) under the Diabetes, Digestive, and Kidney Diseases Extramural Research program (CFDA 93.847), awarded April 15, 2026, with completion targeted for February 28, 2031. The award funds the NOURISH (Nutrition Intervention Optimization to Better Utilize Resources and Support Health) Study, which will develop and test evidence-based interventions to improve nutrition security and reduce diabetes risk among food pantry clients. The research employs the Multiphase Optimization Strategy (MOST) to identify optimized combinations of four intervention components: meal kits, nutritious no-prep meals, culinary nutrition education, and text messages.

The primary deliverable is a randomized factorial experiment involving 400 food pantry clients assigned to one of 16 intervention combinations to determine which component combinations produce the greatest improvements in healthy eating patterns (measured by the Healthy Eating Index). Secondary outcomes evaluated include household food security, weight change, and hemoglobin A1C levels. The study addresses a critical public health gap by generating evidence-based interventions feasible for charitable food system organizations to implement, targeting the elevated diabetes risk and insufficient nutrient intake associated with food insecurity among the 50+ million Americans relying on food banks and pantries.