Connecting Julia to a
more nutritious lifestyle
Managing diabetes certainly isn’t easy. And for Julia Reder, not
having access to healthy foods or knowing nutritious recipes made it
even more diffi cult. That is, until she was referred to the AHN Healthy
Food Center by Danielle Williams, CRNP, of the AHN Center for
Diabetes and Endocrine Health.
The Healthy Food Center provides free, healthy food options
and nutrition counseling to patients aff ected by certain medical
conditions and food insecurity — a lack of access to nutritious foods.
This was a perfect match for Julia as she tried to maintain her blood
glucose levels.
“I met with Colleen at the Healthy Food Center. She was so nice and
helpful. We talked about how I could get away from unhealthy foods,”
Julia noted.
Colleen provided one-on-one-nutrition counseling to Julia, working
with her to understand her likes and dislikes, suggesting many
recipes, and encouraging her to try new things. Because Julia doesn’t
have an oven, she even had to adapt recipes for a crock pot or skillet.
After receiving many tips at the Healthy Food Center, and even
attending a cooking class there, Julia has seen her A1C level — a blood
sugar indicator — start to come down. She’s excited to see where her
progress takes her.
“If I can continue to eat healthier and get away from taking my
medication — that would be great.”
CONSISTENT
WHAT IS FOOD LACKING
ACCESS TO NUTRITIOUS
FOR AN ACTIVE,
HEALTHY LIFE
INSECURITY? FOOD
1 3
13.7 %
OUT OF
“Thanks to the
Healthy Food
Center, I’m eating
better than ever.”
JULIA REDER, DIABETES PATIENT
1
CHRONICALLY ILL
ADULTS IS UNABLE TO
AFFORD MEDICINE,
FOOD, OR BOTH 2
THE FOOD INSECURITY
RATE IN ALLEGHENY
COUNTY, HIGHER THAN
THE NATIONAL AVERAGE 3
1
Feeding Amerca:
https://hungerandhealth.feedingamerica.org/understand-food-insecurity/
Berkowitz, S. A., Seligman, H. K., & Choudhry, N. K. (2015). Treat or eat: food
insecurity, cost-related medication underuse, and unmet needs. American
Journal of Medicine, 127(4), 303–310.
2
Food Insecurity and Health: A Tool Kit for Physicians and Health Care
Organizations (Issue brief No.KYHK42ZEN 1017). (2017). Chicago, IL:
Feeding America.
3