77% of Americans aged 17-24 aren't fit for service: DOD

An overwhelmingly majority of Americans aged 17-24 are unfit for military service, according to a Department of Defense report.

The U.S. Armed Forces increasingly struggle to meet their recruiting targets for the nation's volunteer military, an issue in part attributable to the ever shrinking pool of eligible recruits. A colossal 77% of Americans aged 17-24 are unfit for military service, the Pentagon has concluded, a figure which has risen 6% since 2017.

The DOD report, which was cited in a Feb. 16 congressional hearing, according to the Epoch Times, concluded that obesity was a driving factor in the eligibility decline. Obesity rates have increased consistently for decades and 42.9% of the U.S. adult population qualify as obese, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. In 1999, that figure was more than 10 points lower.

The Times cited a PubMed study linking greater risk of obesity to the receipt of food assistance, especially through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). Essentially, those receiving food assistance are more likely to consume unhealthy food and thereby become obese.

Separate from fitness for service, the military faces numerous other obstacles to recruiting younger soldiers, among them a perception that the military is engaging in left-wing social experiments.

In 2021, the Army unveiled a series of ads as part of "The Calling" recruitment campaign, which highlighted the service stories of individuals from diverse backgrounds. The campaign was widely panned as "woke" and received significant pushback from conservative lawmakers representing southern and midwestern areas that are typically prime recruiting grounds for the military.

Ben Whedon is an editor and reporter for Just the News. Follow him on Twitter.