Effects of A-Ration Meals on Body Weight during Sustained Field Operations
Abstract
Army rations are designed to provide enough energy and other nutrients to meet the nutritional demands and requirements of soldiers in the field. In spite of the availability of sufficient calories, body weight loss has been reported frequently during field studies especially when troops are required to subsist solely on packaged rations such as the Meal, Ready-To-EAt (MRE). The body weight loss has been attributed to inadequate consumption of the rations. Food consumption and body weight data were collected from 31 soldiers in three artillery batteries involved in 8 days of sustained operations field exercises. Because of a temporary moratorium on the use of MREs, the soldiers were fed 3 hot A-ration meals/day during the exercise. The soldiers consumed an average of 3713 kcal/day to produce an overall body weight gain of 0.8 kg during the 8 days of sustained operations. Comparing the results of the present study with that of recent field studies indicated that soldiers consume more calories and lose less body weight when served 3 hot A-ration meals/day as opposed to 2 A-rations/1 MRE, 2 B-rations/1 MRE, 2 T-rations/1 MRe, 1 T-ration/2 MREs, or MREs per day. These data clearly indicate that soldiers served hot meals that they like and given the time to eat these meals will consume sufficient calories to maintain energy balance even during sustained, physically demanding field exercise. Keywords: field feeding, caloric intake, body weight loss.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Oct 27, 1986
- Accession Number
- ADA176270
Entities
People
- Dawn E. Carlson
- Madeleine S. Rose
Organizations
- United States Army Research Institute of Environmental Medicine