Field rations are falling short in fueling troops

EDDIE LEDESMA / Contra Costa (Calif.) Times Two Marines take in some field rations atop their vehicle in Iraq. Lance Cpl. Jason Craig (left), 21, drinks a powdered vanilla milk shake as Lance Cpl. Khai Phung, 20, eats beef ravioli.

Source: Philadelphia Inquirer
NATICK, Mass.

- When Lt. Dave Moore visited infantry units in the remote, rugged mountains of Afghanistan late last year, the Navy medical officer was surprised to hear from many soldiers and Marines that they had lost significant weight.After interviewing more than 150 medics, officers and troops on the ground, Moore concluded that the portable rations called "meals ready to eat" (MREs) - long derided by troops, but valued by the Pentagon for their indestructibility - were not doing the job, causing the soldiers to shed pounds that they very much needed."The standard meal ready to eat does not provide adequate nutrition for dismounted operations in this type of terrain," Moore wrote in his report. "Many Marines and soldiers lost 20 to 40 pounds of body weight during their deployment. At least one soldier was evacuated due to malnutrition and a 60-pound weight loss."

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