Medicare Agent News: INSIDER: Military readiness hampered

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August 2022

Greetings,

A June news report noted that every US military branch is struggling to meet its 2022 recruitment goals. One reason for the shortage of recruits is excess weight.

To enlist without a waiver, recruits must meet body composition standards, and the maximum allowable body mass index (BMI) is 27.5. Using that BMI cutoff, a recent DNPAO analysis found that more than 1 in 3 US adults aged 17 to 24 are too heavy to serve in our military.

Of US young adults who are weight-eligible for the military, only 3 in 4 report physical activity levels that prepare them for the challenges of basic training. Consequently, only 2 in 5 young adults are both weight-eligible and active enough for military service.

Obesity has serious health consequences for individuals, and people who are physically inactive may miss out on immediate and long-term health benefits. Beyond these individual consequences, obesity costs the US healthcare system nearly $173 billion a year. And, as the above data remind us, obesity and physical inactivity hamper our military readiness.

How can we help ensure that young adults who want to serve in the military are physically prepared for that commitment? The answer lies in creating healthy communities where everyone—including active-duty service members and potential military recruits—is as healthy as possible.

The work we are doing together bolsters this goal. Increasing support for breastfeeding and ensuring that early care and education settings follow obesity prevention standards help children get a healthy start. Creating access to affordable, healthy food and activity-friendly communities is key. And working to remove environmental and systemic barriers to health is essential. For example, in many neighborhoods, poor sidewalk and street infrastructure limit safe access to spaces for physical activity.

Everyone needs access to safe and convenient places for physical activity as well as nutritious, affordable food. Thank you for all you do to make healthy living easier for everyone, which ultimately will help reinforce our military readiness.

Dr. Ruth Petersen, Director, DNPAO

See Unfit to Serve

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Feature Of The Month

Infant and Young Child Feeding in Emergencies Toolkit

Emergencies can create feeding challenges for families and challenges for breastfeeding families. Infants and young children are especially vulnerable during emergencies, when various exposures can lead to illness and infection.

The new Infant and Young Child Feeding in Emergencies Toolkit provides information and resources for emergency preparedness and response personnel, families, and caregivers. It is designed to help ensure that infants and toddlers are fed safely during natural disasters such as hurricanes, floods, wildfires, earthquakes, and tornadoes.

This toolkit focuses on efforts specific to the United States and its territories. The toolkit contains:

Guidance on how to best support families and provide optimal nutrition to infants and young children during emergencies.

Health equity considerations.

Printable handouts to use with or give to families.

Information for families and caregivers on how to be prepared to feed infants and young children during emergencies.

Information about formula and feeding supply donations during emergencies.

See Toolkit Online

Download the Toolkit

News You Can Use

What's New

New Physical Activity Campaign Resources Available

Moving Matters for My Health is a new campaign to support Active People, Healthy Nation^SM. Campaign resources are available to help communities and organizations increase awareness and promote physical activity. Media resources include sample social media posts with hashtags and suggested imagery, online banner ads, audio/radio scripts, and photos. Outreach materials include a campaign one-pager, letter to local organizations, and content for blogs, newsletters, and websites.

In addition, online banner ads are available from the State and Community Health Media Center. Nonprofit and government organizations ordering through the Media Center can add a logo to the digital and social media ads for a small fee. To order, you must have a login; new users can create a login here. Allow a few weeks for processing.

In Case You Missed It

Lark Award: Florida Leader and Georgia Partnership Recognized for Advancing Health Equity

Both Thamara Labrousse from Live Healthy Miami Gardens in Florida and Healthy Savannah (Georgia) received the 2022 Racial and Ethnic Approaches to Community Health (REACH) Lark Galloway-Gilliam Award for Advancing Health Equity.

The award recognizes extraordinary individuals, organizations, or community coalitions associated with the REACH program. Award recipients have meaningfully assisted with and carried out culturally tailored interventions that advance health equity, reduce health disparities, and increase community engagement to address preventable health risks.

The award is named in memory of Lark Galloway-Gilliam, the founding executive director of California’s Community Health Councils, Inc.

Read More

Win From the Field: Ideas From CDC-Funded Grantees

HOP Partners Use Technology to Plan Improved Nutrition and Increased Physical Activity

An interdisciplinary team is developing plans to improve nutrition and increase physical activity in five Georgia counties. Rural settings often lack safe routes for physical activity and easy access to everyday destinations such as grocery stores and parks.

Faculty and students from the University of Georgia (UGA) developed mapping software to help communities determine where to install sidewalks and bike paths. Students studying landscape architecture at the College of Environment and Design used the tool to prepare an inventory of conditions in each community. The software helped students identify undeveloped parcels of land that could be developed in ways that encourage easy access to healthy food and physical activity. Students then created master plans for these parcels of land based on focus groups and meetings with community members.

Some projects the students identified are underway, such as a community garden at a school and new walking trails. In other cases, communities are using results from the students’ work to strengthen applications for funding for local projects.

UGA is a recipient of DNPAO’s High Obesity Program (HOP) which funds land-grant universities to work with community extension services in counties where more than 40% of adults have obesity. In Georgia, project partners include UGA Extension, the College of Public Health, the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, the College of Environment and Design, and the College of Family and Consumer Science.