Delivering Food Resources & Kitchen Skills (FoRKS) to Adults With Food Insecurity and Hypertension

NCT ID: NCT05856591

Last Updated: 2026-02-05

Study Results

Results pending

The study team has not published outcome measurements, participant flow, or safety data for this trial yet. Check back later for updates.

Basic Information

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Recruitment Status

RECRUITING

Clinical Phase

NA

Total Enrollment

200 participants

Study Classification

INTERVENTIONAL

Study Start Date

2023-04-17

Study Completion Date

2027-07-30

Brief Summary

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The goal of this clinical trial is to determine the impact of a home-delivered foods and kitchen skills program on health and nutrition in adults with high blood pressure and food insecurity.

Researchers will compare Food Resources \& Kitchen Skills (FoRKS) and Enhanced Usual Care (EUC) to evaluate the effects on mean systolic blood pressure (SPB), HbA1c, food security and nutrition.

Participants will complete 24-hr blood pressure monitoring, standard blood pressure measurements, weight, finger stick for A1c point-of-care testing, and questionnaires.

Detailed Description

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This behavioral randomized controlled trial will evaluate nutritious food delivery and cooking classes (FoRKS) versus enhanced usual care (EUC) in adults with food insecurity and systolic blood pressure of ≥120 mm Hg. This project seeks to evaluate the potential for hands-on training in food management skills to create lasting improvements in food security, self-efficacy, nutrition, and risk factor reduction in persons with prevalent chronic disease.

Adults who pass the telephone screen will be invited to complete a blood pressure check for final eligibility determination. Participants must receive an average systolic read of ≥120 mmHG across 3 standard BP readings with designated wait periods; a maximum of 5 readings may be attempted to receive 3 successful measurements necessary to calculate the average. Participants who meet criteria and give informed consent will complete a full baseline assessment consisting of questionnaires, finger stick for A1c point-of-care testing, weight, and 24-hour ambulatory blood pressure before randomization to one of two arms:

1. Enhanced Usual Care (EUC), consisting of access to existing usual primary care services such as social determinants of health screenings, referrals to food pantries, and assistance enrolling in food assistance programs. They will be enrolled in a 5-week Hypertension Self-Management Education and Support (SMES) class, which is an existing CDC-endorsed program offered at Eskenazi to provide information and skills for managing hypertension (HTN).
2. Food Resources \& Kitchen Skills (FoRKS), consisting of the same services as EUC plus home-delivered Mediterranean-style ingredient kits and virtual cooking classes for an additional 11 weeks with embedded lessons in kitchen organization, tool use, nutrition, budgeting, and shopping.

Assessments will be completed around Week 16 as the primary endpoint, and around Week 24 for maintenance evaluation.

Conditions

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Food Insecurity Hypertension Nutrition Disease Management

Study Design

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Allocation Method

RANDOMIZED

Intervention Model

PARALLEL

Primary Study Purpose

TREATMENT

Blinding Strategy

DOUBLE

Investigators Outcome Assessors

Study Groups

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Enhanced Usual Care (EUC)

Participants randomized to EUC will have access to existing usual primary care services. They will also be enrolled in Hypertension Self-Management Education and Support (SMES) class ("Hypertension group"), which is an existing CDC-endorsed program offered at Eskenazi Health to provide information and skills for managing hypertension (HTN). Classes are led by registered dietitians via Webex.

Group Type ACTIVE_COMPARATOR

Enhanced Usual Care (EUC)

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

Enhanced Usual Care (EUC) includes 5 weeks of hypertension classes.

Food Resources & Kitchen Skills (FoRKS)

Participants randomized to FoRKS will attend weekly HTN SMES classes separately from EUC participants. SMES classes will include the EUC curriculum stated above and an introduction to the upcoming FoRKS intervention.

Following HTN SMES completion, FoRKS continues with home-delivered Mediterranean-style ingredient kits, food management lessons, and hands-on cooking classes in one's own kitchen. Classes are led by registered dietitians via Webex. Classes are held twice per week thru Week 12, then only once per week through Week 16.

Group Type EXPERIMENTAL

Food Resources & Kitchen Skills (FoRKS)

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

Food Resources \& Kitchen Skills (FoRKS) includes 5 weeks of hypertension classes followed by 11 weeks of home-delivered Mediterranean-style ingredient kits and virtual cooking classes with embedded lessons in kitchen organization, tool use, nutrition, budgeting, and shopping.

Interventions

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Food Resources & Kitchen Skills (FoRKS)

Food Resources \& Kitchen Skills (FoRKS) includes 5 weeks of hypertension classes followed by 11 weeks of home-delivered Mediterranean-style ingredient kits and virtual cooking classes with embedded lessons in kitchen organization, tool use, nutrition, budgeting, and shopping.

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

Enhanced Usual Care (EUC)

Enhanced Usual Care (EUC) includes 5 weeks of hypertension classes.

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

Eligibility Criteria

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Inclusion Criteria

1. Fluent in English
2. Marion County resident
3. 35-75 years
4. Systolic BP of ≥120 in prior 12 months
5. Ability to see and read street signs (self report)
6. Stable housing with independent access to kitchen, including functional stove or hotplate, oven, refrigerator, and freezer (self report)
7. Activity independence per functional activities questionnaire (FAQ; \<3 responses of "Require Assistance" and 0 responses of "Dependent")
8. Food insecurity per first two items of USDA 18-item survey with ≥ 1 response of "Often true" or "Sometimes true" \[1) Within the past 12 months, you worried that your food would run out before you got the money to buy more; 2) Within the past 12 months, the food you bought just didn't last and you didn't have money to get more.\] OR currently listed as food insecure in Eskenazi EMR; OR currently receiving SNAP benefits.
9. normal cognition per six-item screener (SIS; score of ≥ 5)
10. Mean systolic BP of ≥120 from 3 standard BP measurements taken by research staff following standardized wait periods.

Exclusion Criteria

1. lives in nursing home
2. diagnosis of dementia or Alzheimer disease or mild cognitive impairment; Parkinson disease; brain tumor/infection/surgery (within the last 10 years with residual symptoms and/or functional loss/deficit, such as impaired learning, memory, or communication); psychosis, schizophrenia, or bipolar disorder
3. ICD 10 code I11/hypertensive heart disease, ICD 10 code I12/hypertensive CKD, ICD 10 code I13/hypertensive heart disease and CKD, ICD 10 code I15, or ICD 10 code I16
4. alcohol consumption ≥ 8 drinks per week for women, or ≥15 drinks per week for men
5. drug use/abuse (excluding marijuana) per EMR
6. moving out of area during study timeline
7. scheduling conflicts with intervention schedule
8. unwilling to use a touchscreen
9. unwilling to be on video conferencing
10. low communicative ability, functional status, or other disorders (examiner rated) that would interfere with interventions and assessments
11. unable to provide informed consent
Minimum Eligible Age

35 Years

Maximum Eligible Age

75 Years

Eligible Sex

ALL

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Sponsors

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National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities (NIMHD)

NIH

Sponsor Role collaborator

Indiana University

OTHER

Sponsor Role lead

Responsible Party

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Daniel Clark

Associate Professor of Medicine

Responsibility Role PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

Principal Investigators

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Daniel O Clark, PhD

Role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

Indiana University

Richard Holden, PhD

Role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

Indiana University

Locations

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Eskenazi Health

Indianapolis, Indiana, United States

Site Status RECRUITING

Countries

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United States

Central Contacts

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Daniel O Clark, PhD

Role: CONTACT

317-274-9292

Lyndsi R Moser, BA, CCRP

Role: CONTACT

317-963-7301

Other Identifiers

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R01MD017961

Identifier Type: NIH

Identifier Source: secondary_id

View Link

16773

Identifier Type: -

Identifier Source: org_study_id

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