Study shows majority of soldiers overweight

More than half of British soldiers are overweight or obese, it emerged Thursday. A Ministry of Defence-funded study of Army personnel found that 57 per cent are too heavy for their height, with 12 per cent classed as obese. The report warned that while the figures were lower than among civilians, they could jeopardise health and leave the soldiers too unfit to fight. The researcher, a major who has spent 27 years in the Army, urged caution, saying many of the men and women in our forces were bulked up by muscle. But obesity experts said the figure of 57 per cent was so high that it was unlikely to be explained by muscle build-up alone. Major Paul Sanderson studied the body mass index of 50,000 British soldiers, around half of the Army. BMI is a measure of a person's weight that takes into account their height. A figure of above 25 is classed as overweight and above 30, obese. The data the major used was collected by the military's scientific arm, the Defence Analytical Services agency. It revealed the average BMI of female troops was 24, teetering on the border of being overweight. The male figure was 26. Overall, 44.9 per cent were classed as overweight and 12.1 per cent as obese. From / Gulf News