How obesity and malnutrition is a national security issue

(NaturalNews) According to Lt. Gen. Hertling, of the U.S. Army, our national health has become a serious threat to national security, a threat that will escalate to a severe threat within the next 20-30 years. When Hertling was placed in charge of initial training in the Army, he discovered the poor health of our Army recruits resulted in the Army hemorrhaging money due to injuries.

Of the civilians who wanted to be soldiers, 75% couldn't qualify. There are a multitude of reasons for this unfortunate statistic.

• Only 6 out of 50 states mandate physical education in every grade of K-12.
• Children now spend an average of more than 7 ? hours a day in front of a screen.
• Only 1/3 of American children are physically active every day.
• Less than 5% of American adults engage in 30 minutes of exercise each day; only 1/3 of Americans attain the recommended amount of exercise each week.
• Nearly two thirds of Americans are overweight or obese.

Currently, 15,000 potential annual recruits fail their physicals and an additional 27% are turned away due to obesity.

This national health crisis has severely impaired our ability to quickly mobilize and expand our military, should the need arise.

Empty Calories

On average, Americans are overfed and undernourished with diets high in calories yet low in nutrition. Diets high in saturated fats, high in sodium, high in sugar, and high in processed foods are the norm. Even those who are not obese are still undernourished. Although a civilian may pass the minimum physical requirements to join the U.S. military, poor health results in training injuries.

Budget Breaking Injuries

One example of the kind of injuries caused from long-term malnourishment and poor fitness is the femoral neck stress injury - an injury of the hip. The tip of the pelvis cracks, resulting in a stress fracture. Treatment of this injury costs the Army between $100,000-$300,000 per soldier.

Better Nutrition Was the Solution

In order to reduce these injuries, the Army changed the way they fed the soldiers. A wide variety of vegetables and other nutrient dense foods filled the mess halls. In order to make this way of eating seem appealing to the soldiers, they called the new program "Fueling the Soldier for Maximum Performance." The result was surprising to many. The reduction in injuries saved the Army 30 million dollars in medical expenses.

If you're looking to improve your health and strengthen your resistance to injury, check out 8 Easy Steps to Health and Homemade Multivitamin/Mineral Formula.

Sources:

http://clinical.diabetesjournals.org

https://www.youtube.com

http://www.fitness.gov

About the author:
Joel learned long ago that pharmaceuticals were not the answer to health and vitality. He gave up on pharmaceuticals many years ago, and he also gave up wheat and refined sugars. His hobbies include gluten free baking, gardening, and fitness. Joel is passionate about agriculture and environmental issues. Joel believes that progressive, cutting-edge, organic agriculture can feed the world.