Ruopeng An|Junjie Wang|Junyi Liu|Jing Shen|Emily Loehmer|Jennifer McCaffrey
A systematic review of food pantry-based interventions in the USA
Washington University in St. Louis|University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign|Guangzhou Sport University|Dalian University of Technology|Soka University of America|Beijing Sport University|University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign|University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
food pantries play critical role combating food insecurity objective present work systematically review synthesize scientific evidence regarding effectiveness food pantrybased interventions usakeywordreference search conducted pubmed web science scopus cochrane library cinahl peerreviewed articles published may 2018 met following criteriafood pantry andor food bank usa study design randomized controlled trial rct prepost study outcomes dietrelated outcomes eg nutrition knowledge food choice food security diet quality study subjects food pantrybank clientsfourteen articles evaluating twelve distinct interventions identified keywordreference search met eligibility criteria included review five rct remaining seven prepost studies studies found food pantrybased interventions effective improving participants dietrelated outcomes particular nutrition education interventions clientchoice intervention enhanced participants nutrition knowledge cooking skills food security status fresh produce intake food display intervention helped pantry clients select healthier food items diabetes management intervention reduced participants glycaemic levelfood pantrybased interventions found effective improving participants dietrelated outcomes interventions modest scale usually short followup duration future studies warranted address challenges conducting interventions food pantries shortage personnel resources ensure intervention sustainability longterm effectiveness