It’s no secret that America’s military is struggling to find people who are fit for service these days. Maintaining health and wellness among its existing members has also become a challenge.
A Department of Defense report cited during a Feb. 16 Congressional hearing offered a hard pill to swallow: 77 percent of Americans between 17–24 are now physically unqualified to enter the armed forces. This represents a 6 percent increase from 2017.
Accentuating this was last year’s battle to find new recruits in every branch of the military.
One of the major hurdles recruiters now face is obesity, which has become a dominant health challenge for Americans. As of 2020, the prevalence of obesity in the adult population hit nearly 42 percent….