VA’s Million Veteran Program supports Whole Health research

At VA, Whole Health means supporting your health and well-being by focusing on what matters to you rather than what’s the matter with you. VA’s Million Veteran Program (MVP) knows that “what matters” will be different for each of the 1,000,000+ Veterans who have joined MVP, which is why the program encourages Veterans from all backgrounds to become part of VA’s largest effort to improve health care for all.

For many people, creating a Whole Health plan may focus on being healthy, strong and active throughout their lifetime. And across the board—regardless of health care background or conditions—there are steps you can take to help support your whole health and stay happy and healthy for a long time.

MVP research is committed to Veteran health and wellness

There are many contributing factors to Veteran health and wellness and what’s most important to each Veteran will be unique. Researchers use information from MVP to study many different conditions that matter to Veterans.

Since 2011, they’ve been able to:

• Identify several lifestyle factors you should focus on to add years to your lifespan, like exercise, good social relationships, quality sleep and maintaining minimal stress.
• Find that eating high levels of sodium and low levels of potassium can increase risk of heart disease. Consider discussing your diet with your health care provider to ensure you’re eating for heart health.
• Discover that both short sleep (less than 5 hours consistently) and long sleep (more than 10 hours consistently) may be associated with depression. If one of your goals is improved sleep or better mental health, discuss your sleep habits with your health care provider.

Join MVP to support Veteran health care

This research will allow for more personalized health care for Veterans and better whole health for all. Talk to your health care team to develop a whole health strategy for you. You can find resources on creating goals for your health or completing a personal health inventory or learn more about the research MVP is doing to support lifelong health and wellness for Veterans.

This research is made possible by the more than 1,000,000 Veterans who have already signed up for MVP. Join their ranks today by signing up or calling 866-441-6075 to make an appointment at a participating VA facility. You don’t need to receive your care at VA to participate.