Population

The MVP is an ongoing prospective cohort study and mega‐biobank in the Department of Veterans Affairs Healthcare System designed to study genetic influences on health and disease among veterans. Eligible subjects must be active users of the Veteran Health Administration (with available electronic health record) and willing to provide informed consent. We began enrollment in 2011, initially at VA facilities in Boston, Massachusetts, and West Haven, Connecticut. Subsequently, other recruitment centers were added nationwide. As of February 2017, a total of 504 988 veterans have been enrolled. Detailed description of MVP design and methods has been published.15 Current analyses are restricted to 153 802 participants who provided data on diet during enrollment and were free of CAD at baseline. All participants provided informed consent, and the study protocol was approved by the Veterans Affairs Central Institutional Review Board.