Local health systems prescribing healthy food to patients - cleveland.com

Patients can chose healthy items inside the new Food for Life Market located at the University Hospitals Otis Moss Jr. Health Center. Following a referral from their physician, patients are offered a week's worth of healthy food. The initiative is to combat the food desert in the Fairfax neighborhood, a preventive model to address chronic health conditions with free access to healthy food choices. (Lisa DeJong/The Plain Dealer)

By Ginger Christ, The Plain Dealer

CLEVELAND, Ohio – Local health systems are hoping an apple a day really will keep the doctor away.

Cleveland’s three largest systems are turning to on-site food clinics to curtail the rate of chronic illnesses such as diabetes and hypertension by providing healthy food to patients who otherwise might not be able to afford a healthy meal or aren’t sure from where that next meal will come.

The effort is part of a local and national movement to use food as medicine to enable healthier lifestyles and reduce levels of food insecurity.

Joyce Kavaras, a registered dietitian for University Hospitals Population Health Management, left, helps Yvonne Zellner, 80, right, pick out green leafy lettuce inside the new Food for Life Market located at the University Hospitals Otis Moss Jr. Health Center. (Lisa DeJong/The Plain Dealer)

“We know that clients want and need fresh fruits and vegetables but the fact is that fresh fruit and vegetables are hard to afford,” said Kristin Warzocha, president and CEO of the Greater Cleveland Food Bank. “If you’re on a tight budget, boxed carbohydrates stretch farther and may fill you up but they’re certainly not as good for your health.”

Joyce Kavaras, a registered dietitian for University Hospitals Population Health Management, left, helps Yvonne Zellner, 80, shop for healthy items for her husband inside the new Food for Life Market located at the University Hospitals Otis Moss Jr. Health Center. (Lisa DeJong/The Plain Dealer)

Of the roughly 250,000 people the Food Bank annually serves in Northeast Ohio, two-thirds of the households included someone with hypertension while one-third had someone with diabetes. In Cuyahoga County, about 19 percent of the population, or 234,000 people, are food insecure.

Anne Leach, community program director and wellness dietitian for Sodexo Healthcare, reaches for healthy items inside the new Food for Life Market located at the University Hospitals Otis Moss Jr. Health Center. (Lisa DeJong/The Plain Dealer)

During a recent checkup at University Hospitals' Otis Moss Jr. Health Center in Fairfax, 67-year-old Rosemary Cash found out she had high a blood sugar level, which is an indicator for diabetes. Her doctor offered to put her on medication or give her a referral to UH’s new Food for Life Market, she said.

“I’m not taking any medications if I don’t have to,” Cash said. “I’d rather eat to get more healthy than take a pill.”

Joyce Kavaras, a registered dietitian for University Hospitals Population Health Management, right, helps patient Robin Goins, 50, left, shop for healthy items inside the new Food for Life Market located at the University Hospitals Otis Moss Jr. Health Center. (Lisa DeJong/The Plain Dealer)

At the UH market, which opened at Otis Moss in October, a dietician helps patients select healthy foods, ranging from turkey to Brussels sprouts to blueberries.

“At the end of the day, we’re empowering and educating people,” said Lora Silver, the community outreach dietician for the Food for Life Market.

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