According to an internal Canadian military briefing, nearly three quarters (72%) of Canadian troops are overweight or clinically obese.
28% of members are considered obese, while 44% are overweight, as per a series of briefings conducted by Canadian Forces Health Services last June.
The briefings warned of “increasing obesity prevalence” in the CAF.
Comparatively, the national Canadian rate of obesity is 30.2%, and 35.5% overweight, putting 65.7% of Canadians in either category.
In other words, CAF members represent a higher combined rate of fatness than the average Canadian.
No improvement in sight
Sadly, the situation isn’t likely to improve anytime soon. Last year, Defence Minister Bill Blair said that the CAF would loosen medical requirements that applicants must meet to address a long-standing recruitment challenge.
The CAF is currently about 16,000 members short.
In fact, since the CAF instituted COVID vaccine mandates in 2021, the CAF have lost more personnel than they’ve gained.
With recruitment, defense spending, and recruitment criteria all below historic standards, Canada’s military remains outnumbered 7 to 1 in terms of known undocumented migrants to active military personnel.
