For adults managing both type 2 diabetes and high blood pressure, an eight-month supply of meals designed for their health needs brought a practical change: they ate better and saw improvements in blood pressure and blood sugar. The early findings were presented at the American Heart Association’s Scientific Sessions 2026, held Nov. 6–9 in Chicago.
The study matters because food can shape the course of long-term illness, yet many people struggle to get healthy meals. More than half of U.S. adults have poor-quality diets, with too few fruits, vegetables, whole grains and other nourishing foods, and too much sodium, sugary drinks and processed meat. In 2024, food insecurity affected 18.3 million U.S. households, nearly 14%. When people lack reliable access to nutritious food, risks for obesity, heart disease, stroke, high blood pressure and type 2 diabetes can rise.
As part of the American Heart Association’s Health Care by Food initiative, researchers enrolled more than 100 adults with both type 2 diabetes and high blood pressure. Half received 10 medically tailored meals each week for all eight months. The other half received the same number for the first three months, then one fewer meal each month for five months, ending with five meals a week in the final month.
Both groups also received nutrition counseling from a dietitian and an interactive heart-health course. It included the American Heart Association’s Life’s Essential 8, a set of key health measures, along with cooking demonstrations designed to reflect participants’ cultures. People also received fresh produce, healthy seasonings and other ingredients to help them prepare healthy food at home.
Researchers reported that the program improved diet quality and access to healthy food, while lowering blood pressure and blood sugar. Reducing meal deliveries over time did not appear to weaken those health benefits when paired with the education and support. The study was preliminary, and the findings were presented at a scientific meeting; they do not establish that the approach will work the same way for everyone.
Lead author Nour Makarem, an assistant professor of epidemiology and co-director of the Chronic Disease Unit at Columbia University Irving Medical Center’s Mailman School of Public Health, said earlier research had not tested how the number of meals each week affects health or what level might be cost-effective. The results suggest that food programs need not be reserved only for people with advanced or terminal illness. Starting sooner, while helping people build skills for eating well at home, may help prevent chronic disease from getting worse.
The researchers’ next challenge is to learn how such programs can be delivered widely and sustainably. These findings point to a hopeful possibility: meals matched to medical needs, combined with practical food education, may support better health even as meal deliveries gradually taper off.