U.S. flagAn official website of the United States government
                    Here's how you know **Official websites use .gov**
                            
                            A **.gov** website belongs to an official government organization in the United States.
 **Secure .gov websites use HTTPS**
                            
                            A **lock** (                            
                              A locked padlock                                                      
                            
                            ) or **https://** means you’ve safely connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.


Menu Agricultural Research Service
						
                    U.S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
 Plains Area
 close



    Research

                    Research Projects
                                    Publications
                                    Collaborations
                                    News
                People

                    Staff Listing
                                    Careers


        
                Plains Area Cities

                    Fort Collins, Colorado
                            Manhattan, Kansas
                            Manhattan, Kansas (NBAF)
                            Miles City, Montana
                            Sidney, Montana
                            Fargo, North Dakota
                            Grand Forks, North Dakota
                            Mandan, North Dakota
                            Clay Center, Nebraska
                            Lincoln, Nebraska
                            Las Cruces, New Mexico
                            El Reno, Oklahoma
                            Brookings, South Dakota
                            Bushland, Texas
                            College Station, Texas
                            Houston, Texas
                            Kerrville, Texas
                            Lubbock, Texas
                            Temple, Texas


                    Who Are We
                        Area Director's Office
                                    Outreach, Diversity & Equal Opportunity (ODEO)
                                    Statistics
                                    Technology Transfer
                                    RPES
                                    Ethics
                                    Plains Area OSQR
                                    Plains Area Safety & Occupational Health Office
                                    Plains Area Scientific Integrity
                    What We Have To Offer
                        Summer Research Opportunities
                                    Life in the Plains Area
                                    Plains Area Research Information Sharing Program
                                    Plains Area Diversity Task ForceSearch small
                    Search
            
            ARS Home
                                About ARS
                                Contact Us




ARS Home Research





- 2023
- Human Nutrition (107)

Research Project: A Systems Approach to Responsive Agriculture **Location:
                            Responsive Agricultural Food Systems Research** 2023 Annual Report **Objectives**
                                

Agriculture directly influences human health by supplying the basic ingredients to a food system that then provides the basis for human diets which directly modify health and risk of chronic disease. The cost of chronic disease in the United States is estimated to be greater than $1 trillion annually. Obesity, the most prevalent, affects 40% of the population, and obesity is causative for other morbidities including diabetes, heart disease, and some cancers. Further, the criticality of a proper diet has been highlighted with the COVID-19 pandemic in which many have succumbed to the virus due to underlying health conditions such as chronic diseases influenced by the diet. Thus, reducing the risk of diet-related chronic diseases and associated health care costs requires a partnership between agriculture and human health. Researchers seek out to achieve the following objectives: Develop a better understanding of the relationship between animal and plant agricultural production and management, the environment, nutrient quality and content and human health; Develop innovative data strategies to advance precision agriculture and nutrition; link and analyze large and diverse datasets using cutting edge Data Science/Data Engineering approaches such as AI and machine learning; and more clearly define the requirements for and the role of human nutrition in public health, focusing on subgroups and underserved populations and determine whether/how responsive agriculture can help meet these requirements and improve human health. **Approach**
                                

Diet quality affects the health of all Americans, through maintenance of essential functions and by reduction of the risk of chronic disease. The central importance of diet has been emphasized by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic that has impacted all segments of society across the United States, but some segments have been shown to be at greater risk than others. Certainly an ubiquitous risk factor is the presence of underlying health concerns. The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) data suggest that greater than 90% of all COVID-19 deaths occurred in individuals with underling health conditions. Among the primary contributing factors listed by CDC were obesity, heart disease, and type 2 diabetes. All of these conditions are responsive to diet, thus poor diets may ultimately underlie much of the increased susceptibility to COVID-19. **Progress Report**
                                

Advancing the food and agriculture system synergy will improve diets and health outcomes, reduce diet-related health care costs, improve quality of life, limit the environmental impact of the agriculture system, and reduce food waste while increasing food production to levels needed to nourish the estimated more than 9 billion people on Earth by 2050. In 2023 recruitment of ARS personnel took place. Collaborations with Texas A&M University have been formed and this project is terminating and future research progress may be found at 3093-51000-001-000D. **Accomplishments**


Return to top


Connect with ARS Sign up


ARS Home
                            USDA.gov
                            Plain Writing
                            Policies & Links
                            Civil Rights Statements
                            FOIA
                            Accessibility Statement
                            Privacy Policy
                            Non-Discrimination Statement
                            Quality of Information
                            USA.gov
                            WhiteHouse.gov