America’s Obesity Crisis Poses Threat to National Security, Report Says

Marines participate in a combat conditioning exercise during Marine Combat Training on at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, on Feb. 20, 2013. Scott Olson/Getty Images

The U.S. military is grappling with a growing threat from an unlikely source: America’s obesity crisis, a new report has found.

Nearly one-third of young Americans are too overweight to join the military, according to the Council for a Strong America, and it is causing difficulties for the military as it tries to recruit the next generation of soldiers.