The Silent Service: Identifying Under-Recognized Young Military Caregivers.

Our findings suggest important differences in caregiving arrangements when young caregivers (<age 25) are in a caregiving network. In this study, Veterans with young caregivers reported more unmet ADL and IADL needs, which compliments findings from Miller et al. 2024 that aging civilian adults with young caregivers presented more health and social risks than other aging adults. Taken together, the presence of a young caregiver may be an important distinction to guide support services for aging Veterans and their families. Specifically, Veterans with young caregivers may need more support in regards to health literacy, nutrition, transportation, and social connectedness. Future research should focus on additional risks that the presence of a young caregiver may signal and explore how caregiving impacts young caregivers' mental and physical health, educational and economic outcomes, including career choice or delay education and/or career, and how this differs for military, Veteran, and civilian families.