CORVALLIS, Ore. — For many years, Food Hero — a nutrition education initiative of Oregon State University Extension Service — focused primarily on families with children.
Although older adults were served by Extension programs more broadly, they were not the main audience of Food Hero. In 2019, Food Hero began developing educational resources specifically for older adults.
OSU Extension formed focus groups of older adults to survey their cooking habits and needs before launching Food Hero for Older Adults in 2020. The program promotes healthy eating and movement through a quarterly newsletter developed in partnership with Oregon Department of Human Services and Oregon Dairy Council.
Food Hero is a statewide initiative funded in part by the Oregon Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Education (SNAP-Ed) program and developed by OSU Extension in English and Spanish. All recipes are tested with participant feedback based on criteria such as flavor, color and texture. Meals are designed to be low-cost, use easy-to-find ingredients and require minimal preparation time.
“We needed some specifically tailored resources for older adults,” said Dusti Linnell, an OSU Extension associate professor based in Tillamook County and a co-author of the Extension publication Nutrition for Older Adults: Preventing Malnutrition as the Body Ages.
Focus groups inform program design
Food Hero formed focus groups of older adults enrolled in the federal Commodity Supplemental Food Program — which serves adults 60 and older — to learn about their cooking habits and needs. Discussions focused in part on ingredients included in food boxes distributed through food banks, pantries and other assistance programs. Participants were selected from Lane and Benton counties.
Focus group members reported challenges such as cutting vegetables or lifting pots and pans due to arthritis, back pain and other conditions. In response, Food Hero for Older Adults includes recipes with adaptations for different mobility levels.
“We focused on the ease of creating a recipe,” said Carol Walsh, a program coordinator for the SNAP-Ed program administered by Extension.
Nutrition and movement go hand in hand
Many focus group participants also expressed interest in foods that support bone health. Older adults often focus on nutrition related to chronic disease management and prevention, Walsh said.
Each newsletter combines nutrition and physical activity tips, with themes such as “Moving more,” “Flexibility” and “Balance.”
“We make a concerted effort to combine physical activity with the nutrition,” Walsh said.
The newsletters also include suggestions and modifications — presented as “sticky notes” — that help tailor recipes to ingredients on hand or an individual’s mobility level. Examples include options for softer foods or smaller portions for people cooking for one or two, Linnell said.
Recipes reflect food box ingredients
Focus group results also showed interest in recipes that use ingredients commonly found in food boxes, such as rice, beans and lentils, said Rose Jepson-Sullivan, SNAP-Ed program manager and chair of the Food Hero for Older Adults workgroup.
Recipes featured in the newsletters highlight these ingredients and explain how they support health.
“It is important to us that our resources are informed by those who use them,” Jepson-Sullivan said, noting that Food Hero reviews materials annually to ensure they meet the needs of Oregonians.
Through partnerships with Oregon Food Bank and Oregon Department of Human Services, printed Food Hero for Older Adults newsletters are placed in Commodity Supplemental Food Program food boxes statewide. Extension also partners with local senior and community centers and farmers markets.
“We work with many community partners to offer programs and resources for older adults, including classes, events and educational displays,” Jepson-Sullivan said.
