Prescription Programs Help to Address Chronic Disease, Reduce Hunger and Decrease Healthcare Costs

“Every other Friday, the Stockton Emergency Food Bank hosts two live cooking classes — one in English and one in Spanish. Last week, Brenda Munoz made a classic tuna melt with an orange, romaine and dandelion salad.

“Dandelion is completely edible,” said Munoz, holding the small leaves from the flower. “They’re really high in vitamin A and folate.”

But this isn’t your typical cooking lesson on Zoom and Facebook. It’s part of a “food prescription” experiment — prescriptions for healthy food instead of pills. Diabetics get a free box full of fruits, vegetables, chicken breast, quinoa and other nutritious food delivered to their homes every two weeks — and then can learn some recipes.

Advocates who want to expand the program across California say it could very well be a way to improve chronic conditions, lower health care costs and reduce hunger, all at the same time.”

To read the full article, click on the link below.

Originally published by CalMatters