This project aims to understand how food insecurity contributes to disordered eating behaviors and cardiometabolic health risk among Hispanic/Latino adolescents, a population disproportionately affected by both. Using a longitudinal framework, the study examines relationships between food insecurity, loss of control eating, and health outcomes over a 6-month period. To capture broader context, qualitative interviews with caregivers will explore intergenerational influences, community food access, and perceived needs related to nutrition and health. This 5-year project will guide the development of a culturally responsive, prevention-focused intervention by identifying modifiable targets and incorporating participant feedback. This work supports ongoing efforts to address health inequities and improve eating behavior and cardiometabolic outcomes in youth. This K23 is mentored by Meg Zeller, PhD (BMCP), Amy Shah, MD, MS, FNLA (Endocrinology), Farrah Jacquez (UC), and Lauren Shomaker (Colorado State University) and funded by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute of the National Institutes of Health Career Development Award (K23HL179415, 2026-2031).

Learn More

This project aims to understand and address food access and among Hispanic/Latino adolescents through community-engaged and participatory research approaches. By building partnerships with local Hispanic/Latino-serving organizations, the study seeks to better understand adolescent experiences with food access and identify community-informed priorities for improving health. The project includes collaboration with community leaders through focus groups and surveys, alongside a participatory photovoice study with adolescents to document and reflect on their lived experiences of food access. These activities allow youth to actively contribute to the research process and elevate their perspectives. The project will culminates in a public photo exhibition and community forum, with opportunities for ongoing collaboration with adolescents and community members. Findings will inform future research and intervention development by identifying key themes, community needs, and potential targets for action. This project is mentored by Farrah Jacquez, PhD (UC) and Meg Zeller, PhD (BMCP) and funded the Place Outcomes Research Award: Young Investigator Diversity Award (2025-2026).

This pilot project aims to evaluate a self-guided, phone-based intuitive eating intervention for high school-age adolescents interested in improving their relationship with food. Intuitive eating is an evidence-based approach that promotes positive eating behaviors and body satisfaction, with demonstrated preventive benefits for weight-related health concerns and disordered eating. Findings from this pilot will inform the feasibility, acceptability, and potential impact of scalable intuitive eating interventions for adolescents in primary care settings. This study is being conducted with collaborators in Behavioral Medicine (Aria Fiat, PhD, Sanita Ley, PhD, Mary Keenan-Pfeiffer, PhD) and General Pediatrics (Jessica Trygier, MD).

The REACH Study was designed to collect data on food insecurity and loss of control eating in two pediatric cardiometabolic health clinics: type 2 diabetes and metabolic dysfunction-associated liver disease (MASLD). With this data, we examined associations amongst food insecurity and loss of control eating, including week-to-week variations in receipt of food stamps in relation to eating behavior. The REACH study was conducted with mentors and collaborators in Behavioral Medicine and Clinical Psychology (Meg Zeller, PhD and Sanita Ley, PhD) and the Divisions of Endocrinology (Amy Shah, MD, MS, FNLA) and Gastroenterology (Stavra A, Xanthakos, MD, MS), and funded by the National Institute of Diabetes and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) Research Training in Child Behavior and Nutrition (T32DK063929-21).

HALO-E is a sub-study of Meg Zeller, PhD’s HALO-2 RCT (Changing Health and Lifestyle Behaviors of Offspring Following Maternal Bariatric Surgery; NIDDK, 5R01DK128525-03), which enrolls mothers who have had bariatric surgery in a 16-week virtual family-based health behavior and obesity prevention program with their 6-12 year old children, in comparison to a standard of care control group. HALO-E (Eating Behaviors) sub-study, aims to understand intergenerational experiences of food insecurity and eating behavior in these unique dyads in the RCT, through examining self-reported food insecurity, community-level factors, disordered eating and dietary intake.

The Bejarano lab collaborates with Cincinnati food access non-profits as part of our involvement in the SAFE Network (System to Achieve Food Equity) at Cincinnati Children’s. For example, we partnered with non-profit Black Power Initiative (BPI) to assess outcomes of their food rescue and distribution program, which led to funding from the United Way Black Empowerment Works Grant to support, sustain, and expand BPI’s program. BPI and the Bejarano Lab at Cincinnati Children's were honored by an Academic-Community Research Partnership Award from the Center for Clinical and Translational Science and Training (CCTST) through the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine. The Bejarano lab and BPI have also partnered on a Youth Garden Program in Avondale as part of our work with the SAFE Network.

As a lab we are passionate about helping youth develop healthy relationships with food and positive body image. We are interested in evidence-based approaches such as mindfulness-based eating, intuitive eating, and body appreciation interventions, which have shown to be preventive to disordered eating habits. With this mission we have built collaborations with Healthworks and clinical colleagues within BMCP. For example, we collaborate with Sanita Ley, PhD on the Body Project Intervention group for adolescent girls and have conducted a QI project with the Healthworks summer camp to pilot an intuitive eating and body image intervention.