PRESCRIPTIONS
Soldiers perform best when fed tasty meals
By Amy Tousman
Q. How do our soldiers keep nourished while on the battlefield?
A. Meals eaten on the battlefield are called MREs or "Meals Ready to Eat." MREs are precooked. They're packed into pouches made of heavy-duty aluminum foil and plastic layered together.
Nourishing soldiers is an important part of the war plan. Food that doesn't taste good does not get eaten. Not eating hinders a soldier's performance by causing low energy and poor concentration.
During the first Gulf War, soldiers nicknamed MREs "Meals Rejected by Everyone." These days, food scientists are trying to remedy that. Soldiers' input is important in developing meals.
Ethnic foods such as Thai chicken, beef stew, and black bean and rice burritos are now part of the menu. Little bottles of Tabasco or packets of cayenne are included.
Dried cappuccino and chai are available. Powdered sports drinks, power bars or candy bars are included for quick energy.
Although these meals can be eaten cold, most soldiers prefer them hot. To heat them, soldiers add an ounce of water. This activates a chemical heating sheet. However, heating MREs briefly emits a smell. This could alert the enemy to a soldier's location. When this poses a danger, soldiers eat the meals cold.
The Pentagon specifies that MREs cannot be larger than a hardback novel. The whole MRE package cannot weigh more than one and a half pounds. They must remain edible for three years when stored at 80 degrees.
Each meal is about 1,250 calories. Before the fall of Baghdad airport, some units were reduced to one meal a day as they waited for supplies to reach them. That makes what dietitians put into each ration pack very important.
If three meals are eaten daily, each soldier would consume about 3,750 calories. That amount is just right for soldiers on the move. It's double the amount of calories the rest of us need.
There's slightly more fat and salt in the meals than most civilians need. These soldiers are physically exerting themselves. The fat gets burned up on the battlefield. Salt is lost through sweat. Cramming so many calories into a small MRE package requires a concentrated source of calories, such as fat.
The next year will bring us some new MREs such as pepperoni and barbeque pocket sandwiches. Do you suppose they could make an MRE with kalua pig and chicken long-rice?
Amy Tousman is a registered dietitian with the Health Education Center of Straub Clinic and Hospital.
Hawai'i experts in traditional medicine, naturopathic medicine and diet take turns writing the Prescriptions column. Send your questions to: Prescriptions, Island Life, The Honolulu Advertiser, P.O. Box 3110, Honolulu, HI 96802; fax 535-8170; e-mail islandlife@honoluluadvertiser.com. This column is not intended to provide medical advice.
