Fitness falters among Southern Army recruits

WASHINGTON – The Army’s problem of finding physically fit recruits at a time of rising obesity in the USA is especially acute in the South, where the service traditionally draws a high percentage of soldiers, a study reported Wednesday.

Army recruits from Southern states are generally in poorer physical condition than those from other parts of the country, concluded researchers at The Citadel, a prestigious military college in Charleston, S.C.

“This has a real impact on national security,” said Daniel Bornstein, a researcher who led the study.

The regional distinction suggests that government policy can influence fitness, and the South may be falling behind the rest of the country. “Some of the greatest public health achievements have come as the result of statelevel policy change,” the study said.

Eleven states — Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas and West Virginia — had among the highest rates of recruits injured during basic training.

Southern states generally have higher obesity rates. Adult obesity is 35% or higher in Alabama, Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and West Virginia, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Lack of physical fitness and obesity contribute to a higher injury rate among soldiers in basic training. Each recruit lost to attrition costs the government $31,000, according to the study.

The study examined recruits who entered the Army from 2010 to 2013 and looked at initial physical tests, including timed runs, and injury rates after recruits got to basic training.