Walmart launches major health-focused program consumers will love

My sister-in-law has superpowers. She can calculate the calorie content of every portion of every food (at least approximately) within seconds.

As someone who has struggled since my teenage years to lose those extra few pounds, I consider her knowledge extremely valuable — especially when you want to lose weight.

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A healthy diet, however, is not only about calories; it’s about the nutritional value. It’s about knowing which food contains certain minerals, vitamins, fats, proteins, etc. To be healthy, we need them all. Not just vitamin C, not just magnesium, not just vitamin D or omega-3 fats. We need every single one of them, and they need to be well-balanced.

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The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently stressed that the country is facing an epidemic of preventable diet-related chronic diseases such as cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, and obesity.

Improving nutrition is one of the most effective ways to reduce these and other illnesses and premature death, writes the agency.

At times when there are so many food choices, wouldn’t it be useful to have someone guide you through it, helping you prioritize your wellness goals and improve your health? Not everyone has a sister-in-law that can tell them exactly what they ate, their calorie intake, and the nutritional value of the food.

Enter Walmart (WMT) with its latest offering.

Walmart taps health tech to launch special nutrition and wellness program

Walmart has partnered with Soda Health, a company focused on health care solutions that address people’s real-life conditions, not just their medical needs.

The world’s largest retailer and Soda Health will collaborate to launch the Walmart Everyday Health Signals program to select Medicare Advantage and Medicaid members.

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The idea behind the initiative is to help consumers improve their wellness through personalized guidance based on retail shopping insights and analysis.

Members who opt to participate will receive key nutrition information for purchases such as fruits and vegetables, suggestions for products that could help them reach wellness goals, and customized healthy recipes and shopping lists.

Members can select a wellness goal, after which they’ll be guided on food choices and lifestyle changes they should make to achieve it.

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“At Walmart, we’re focused on making it easier for individuals and families to access the everyday foods that support their health and well-being,” said Consumer Health and Data Solutions Director Dr. Pravene Nath. “Through our work with Soda Health, we’re helping members and other plan participants access personalized insights and groceries that align with their wellness goals. Together, we’re creating affordable, scalable solutions that address both individual health and broader community needs.”

The ‘food as medicine’ program comes at a crucial time

Soda Health CEO Robby Knight highlighted the importance of the retail and health care sectors working together to improve population health, beginning with proper diet.

“Soda Health is helping to create connections between health plans and retailers to serve their members better by using opt-in data to personalize interventions. As the focus increasingly turns toward the role of food as medicine, programs like this will help define better ways of improving outcomes and reducing the cost of care,” Knight said.

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At a time when we are historically the most vocal about healthy eating and lifestyle, we still fail to use the vast amount of available statistics, suggestions, and guides.

At least that’s what health care statistics show.

For people to make a change, they really need to want to do it. Just because they have a gym in their building doesn’t mean they’ll find the time to work out. 

However, developing even more convenient ways to motivate people to form at least one healthier habit is a good start.

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