Public Health · 3 h ago
Mobile Food Market Trial Finds Lower Sodium but No Improvement in Overall Diet Quality
A cluster randomized clinical trial at 12 subsidized housing sites in Minnesota assessed weekly mobile grocery-market service in 242 adults. After six months, the intervention was associated with lower sodium intake, but did not significantly improve overall diet quality or most other measured outcomes.
- No significant improvement in overall diet quality
- Daily sodium intake was 397 mg lower versus control
- Trial included 242 adults across 12 housing sites
- Most secondary outcomes did not differ
This cluster randomized clinical trial evaluated the Twin Cities Mobile Market at 12 subsidized housing sites in the Minneapolis–St. Paul area from January 2022 to October 2025. A total of 242 adults completed baseline assessments and were assigned by site to weekly market service or a waiting-list control. The primary outcome was Healthy Eating Index-2020 diet quality, assessed using 24-hour dietary recalls; secondary outcomes included nutrient intake, food security, and fruit and vegetable procurement. Follow-up began after six months of market service, and 90% of participants were retained.
In intention-to-treat analyses, the adjusted difference in diet quality was 1.25 points (95% CI, −1.60 to 4.10), with no significant group differences in six of seven secondary outcomes. Participants at intervention sites consumed an adjusted 397 mg less sodium daily than controls (95% CI, −636 to −158 mg). Among intervention-site participants, 43.1% shopped at least once during implementation months five and six; reported satisfaction was high among those who had used the market.
The findings suggest that this service did not improve overall diet quality or most measured outcomes over the study period, although lower sodium intake may be relevant at a population level. The trial involved a specific mobile market and low-income housing communities, and the per-protocol analysis found higher added-sugar intake in the intervention group. Further evidence is needed to determine whether results generalize to other settings or models.
In practice
For adults in subsidized housing communities served by this specific mobile market, weekly service did not significantly improve overall diet quality, food security, or most other measured dietary outcomes after six months. Intention-to-treat analysis found lower daily sodium intake compared with waiting-list controls, but the trial does not establish that mobile markets broadly improve diet-related health. The findings do not support a general practice change; applicability beyond the studied communities and market model is uncertain, and a per-protocol analysis found higher added-sugar intake in the intervention group.
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JAMA Network Open: Full-Service Mobile Food Markets and Dietary Quality in Low-Income Housing Communities ↗This is an automated AI-condensed summary that has not yet been reviewed by an editor. Always consult the full item at the original source.