Excess weight: The military's new battle

Potential military recruits fresh from a life of minimal strenuous physical activity are commonly shellshocked by military fitness regimens. Considering a career in the military means meeting stringent health requirements, including weight prerequisites. Unfit recruits, or an overweight and sedentary youth base from where recruits will come in the future, represent a growing problem of the US armed forces today.

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 Forbes tackles the worrisome prospects of the current weight and physical fitness of American youth. Backed by two academic reports, the article concludes that the American youth are eating too much but exercising less. They consume about “400 billion calories of junk food every year.” The American military may therefore be hardpressed to ensure the physical fitness of its future armed forces.

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Ret. General Richard Myers warns in an opinion piece that joined with other disqualifying factors, weight issues will ultimately eliminate the chances of youth between the ages of 17 and 24 for a career in the military.

Unfortunately, bulging waistlines are not only common among the base of recruits. They also plague existing troops. The Pentagon has been behooved to evaluate obesity-related medical problems among soldiers, veterans, and their families.

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Physical fitness is not just a matter of personal concern for soldiers. Servicemen have to understand that their health is crucial to national security.  


Steven Lash, one of the country’s most prominent health visionaries, established Satori World Medical in San Diego to provide Americans safe and efficient medical travel services for various physical conditions, including weight and obesity issues. More information on medical travel is available at this website.