Meals on wheels for heart health: VA tests Low-Sodium diet to keep vets out of hospital

NCT ID NCT05996328

Recruiting now Disease control Sponsor: VA Office of Research and Development Source: ClinicalTrials.gov ↗

First seen Jun 24, 2026 · Last updated Aug 14, 2026 · Updated 5 times

Summary

This study tests whether providing home-delivered low-sodium meals and short-term dietary counseling helps older veterans with heart failure recover better after a hospital stay. About 1,400 veterans aged 60 and older will be randomly assigned to receive either the meals plus counseling or standard dietary education alone. The main goal is to see if the intervention increases days alive and out of the hospital and improves quality of life.

What this could mean

Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only — not medical advice or a prediction.

Active substance: Home-delivered low-sodium meals and dietary counseling
What this could lead to: If it works, this could provide a simple, practical way to improve recovery and reduce hospital readmissions for older heart failure patients.
What could go wrong: This is a large trial but still early in testing a behavioral intervention. Results may not apply to all heart failure patients, and dietary changes can be hard to maintain long-term.

This is an AI summary of the original study and may miss details. Read our disclaimer.

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Conditions

The condition(s) this trial relates to.

heart failure

As listed by the trial registrant

The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.

HEART FAILURE

Contacts and locations

Locations

Atlanta VA Medical and Rehab Center, Decatur, GA
RECRUITING

Decatur, Georgia, 30033-4004, United States
Birmingham VA Medical Center, Birmingham, AL
RECRUITING

Birmingham, Alabama, 35233-1927, United States
Michael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center, Houston, TX
RECRUITING

Houston, Texas, 77030-4211, United States
Minneapolis VA Health Care System, Minneapolis, MN
RECRUITING

Minneapolis, Minnesota, 55417-2309, United States
North Florida/South Georgia Veterans Health System, Gainesville, FL
RECRUITING

Gainesville, Florida, 32608-1135, United States
Richmond VA Medical Center, Richmond, VA
RECRUITING

Richmond, Virginia, 23249-0001, United States
VA Ann Arbor Healthcare System, Ann Arbor, MI
RECRUITING

Ann Arbor, Michigan, 48105-2303, United States
VA Greater Los Angeles Healthcare System, West Los Angeles, CA
RECRUITING

West Los Angeles, California, 90073-1003, United States
VA Long Beach Healthcare System, Long Beach, CA
RECRUITING

Long Beach, California, 90822, United States
VA NY Harbor Healthcare System, New York, NY
RECRUITING

New York, New York, 10010-5011, United States
VA North Texas Health Care System Dallas VA Medical Center, Dallas, TX
RECRUITING

Dallas, Texas, 75216-7167, United States
VA Palo Alto Health Care System, Palo Alto, CA
RECRUITING

Palo Alto, California, 94304-1207, United States
VA Portland Health Care System, Portland, OR
RECRUITING

Portland, Oregon, 97207-2964, United States
VA Salt Lake City Health Care System, Salt Lake City, UT
RECRUITING

Salt Lake City, Utah, 84148-0001, United States
Washington DC VA Medical Center, Washington, DC
RECRUITING

Washington D.C., District of Columbia, 20422-0001, United States
William S. Middleton Memorial Veterans Hospital, Madison, WI
RECRUITING

Madison, Wisconsin, 53705-2254, United States

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