Creating Communities for Healthier Aging: Connection via Food Systems Change

To lay the foundations for lifelong health, there is now increasing deliberate thought and research around what comprises a healthy community. We know health by and large is not created in a hospital or doctor's office. Rather, the "social determinants of health" comprise an array of factors embedded in the physical and non-physical fabric of communities: culture, education, environment and food systems. The presenter, founder of Healthy Food Action, focuses on the latter. How should one think about a food system that supports lifelong health? Given the strong science around a Mediterranean diet (and slower paced lifestyle), what would policies look like that ensure default food environments in American communities are ones that invent individuals to pursue it -- or not? We highlight research showing that the social connectivity and and happiness created by resilient local food systems can be measured, but is largely overlooked by public health research and policy. The presentation also include discussion of Farmacology, physician Daphne Miller's exploration of what small family farms can teach us about health and sustainability.