During the pandemic, research shows that about 10,000 active U.S. soldiers in the army were diagnosed with obesity between February 2019 and June 2021. Studies show that obese soldiers are more likely to get injured, and less likely to be able to endure physical strain in their profession. In addition, the military has a loss of around 650,000 workdays and around $1.5 billion as a result of obesity-related health issues.

Marine Corps Brigadier General Stephen Cheney said that “It is devastating. We have a dramatic national security problem.” In 2022, the army failed to reach its recruiting goal with 15,000 under their initial hopes, or a quarter of their goal of 60,000. However, it’s not because there is a lack of recruits. Three-quarters of Americans aged seventeen to twenty-four who applied to join the army did not meet the physical requirements. As Cheney said, “The country has not approached obesity as the problem it really is.”

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