The last week of September was an alarming week of obesity-related news. First, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation released the results of its “F as in Fat” report, projecting that half of U.S. adults will be obese by 2030 unless Americans make drastic dietary changes. Then, The New York Times reported that, according to data published by the University of Illinois at Chicago, white people lacking a high school diploma are experiencing sharp drops in life expectancy, reversing generations of progress to extend life spans. There are many possible reasons, including higher rates of smoking and a spike in prescription overdoses, but the skyrocketing rate of obesity is a known suspect.
Then came the release of the most recent report from Mission: Readiness, an organization of about 300 retired generals, admirals and senior civilian military leaders who are trying to spread the word that obesity, and specifically childhood obesity, is nothing short of a dire national security risk. “Still Too Fat to Fight” takes on one of my pet peeves: cheap junk foods that are readily available in our schools. According to the calculations of Mission: Readiness, students in the U.S. consume almost 400 billion calories from junk food sold at schools each year.
This will come as no surprise to anyone who has spent time in high schools — especially those in lower-income communities — where students routinely turn down their free or reduced-price breakfasts or lunches in favor of sacks of salty snacks and high-sugar beverages. And though grade-schoolers usually can’t get away with waiving their federal nutrition guideline-monitored meals, they often have a wide variety of cakes, cookies, candy and chips available to add to them in the cafeteria or from vending machines.
Cringe-worthy statistics
The report features some cringe-worthy statistics: One in four young adults is unable to serve in the military because of excess body fat, and even many of the ones who do manage to enlist are at high risk of injury. The military’s health insurance system, according to Mission: Readiness, spends “well over $1 billion a year on treating weight-related diseases such as diabetes and heart disease,” in addition to the cost of musculoskeletal injuries resulting from inadequate physical fitness and low levels of bone density that may be related to the plunge in dairy intake and a corresponding rise in childhood consumption of sodas and sugary drinks over the past 35 years.