• Data from the Greater Chicago Food Depository shows that individuals with disabilities are especially at risk of food insecurity. Nearly one in three (31.8%) of food insecure households include a working age adult who has a disability.

• As a nutrition and dietetics graduate from Dominican University, without a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist (RDN) credential, our podcast guest, Tracy, is enthusiastic about doing public presentations on a wide variety of nutrition topics. Some of these are supported by mini-grants from the Kids Eat Right campaign of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. Other community audiences pay her a stipend. She speaks on family nutrition, the MyPlate guide, plant-based diets, food waste prevention, healthy eating on a budget, and healthy lifestyle for 50+-year-old people. 
• With moderate cerebral palsy and other chronic conditions, Tracy is on a mission to support and instruct others with disabilities in wholesome lifestyle choices, educate on adaptive cooking and meal planning, and provide mental health management solutions.
• Disabled people, more than other populations, may have a more difficult time getting to meetings and appointments with licensed health professionals and doctors due to transportation issues. Not every healthcare professional truly understands disability. Some compare disabled people to non-disabled peers. This is why disabled people need to have access to health and wellness information that is all evidenced based. It does not matter if it is books, blogs, magazine articles, magazine articles or online newsletters.
• If people need personal financial assistance or medical insurance information, individuals can get access to information from the Social Security Administration at https://www.ssa.gov/. 
• Other people with disabilities can get help from the federally funded Center for Independent Living. Each county has an office with a simple intake process, and everyone with a disability is eligible. Your local office will know what is available nationally, statewide, and locally. There are five core services provided by all independent living centers: advocacy, information and referral, peer support, independent living transition and youth transition. 
• Local Vocational Rehabilitation Centers can offer help like laptops with accessibility features, in-state college tuition, hand controls for a car, specialized drivers’ training, and job search assistance if it is safe and conducive to do so. Tracy does not drive herself.  
• Nonprofit organizations, like the Illinois nonprofit, like Clearbrook, enrich the lives of people with intellectual and developmental, as well as physical disabilities. They can offer a comprehensive variety of quality services to countless individuals, covering all ages, issues, and levels of severity. Programs and services could include home-based, residential, vocational and/or therapeutic offerings. 
• Here are a couple of things Tracy would like the general public to be aware of: 
  • Sometimes organizations offering help for the disabled will expect recipients to always be by their phone to receive a call back. But, if you are a busy professional, like Tracy, you might not be available because of work, projects, writing, physical pain, and so forth. 

• • • Nutrition education can be adapted for all kinds of learners:
      • Visual aids and food models can be used for those who have learning or reading issues.
      • If someone has intellectual disabilities, you can make sure to keep education to a 2nd-4th grade reading level. 
      • If someone has low vision, ask if they want nutrition education emailed to them, so their screen reading software can read the items aloud. Food models can also allow them to feel how big the portion sizes should be. People with disabilities are often very tactile. 
    • Food pantries and other food access locations should be accessible to those with disabilities. Directors can make sure that all bathrooms are accessible to all needs. There also should be enough room for wheelchairs or other mobility devices like walkers, crutches, or canes. Leaders can also encourage staff and volunteers to take sensitivity training for working with clients who have disabilities. 
    • It takes a lot of courage to go get the assistance when you need it. 

• • • People should never ask any disability-related questions unless they have built a relationship with the disabled individual. No stranger would ask for the medical history of non-disabled individuals. 
    • Being with a disabled client at a local food pantry does not mean people should be depicted as victims or as people to be pitied. 
• Sometimes, in order for people to gain their strength and mobility to maintain independence, they go to physical therapy. But insurance might only cover this treatment for two months if it is not after a surgery or procedure. Then, people might have to pay out-of-pocket or find a local nonprofit to get the therapy for maintenance of normal living circumstances. Professionals often look at where people with disabilities are, not where they want to go. Therapy does not get rid of multiple sclerosis, cerebral palsy, Parksinson's Disease, spina bifida or spinal cord injury, but no one goes to physical therapy to cure these issues. They go to therapy to get more from their everyday life – so they can enjoy the fun things!

The beautiful images above were created by Rebecca Garofano, our Food Dignity Institute Lead and Illustration Specialist. You can find more of her work at @VeggieDoodleSoup on Instagram and at her website veggiedoodlesoup.com.