Rat Pack Chat

Abstract

Private Cameron Robison from 2nd Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment, is currently deployed with Alpha Company on Operation ASTUTE, and he is also a qualified fitness instructor. Like almost everyone who has ever eaten a combat ration pack, he has an opinion. However, the interesting points that Private Robison brings to this discussion are drawn from his own knowledge and experience in fitness.

‘C’est la soupe qui fait la soldat!’

- Napoleon

While attributed to Napoleon, the axiom ‘an army marches on its stomach’ is as relevant to military forces today as it has been to armies throughout history. Long ago, military leaders learned that the performance of soldiers on the battlefield was as much a reflection of their training, tactics and leadership as it was of the way that they were being nourished.

According to the Chief of Army’s Capability Intent (CACI), the Army, and individual soldiers by association, must be capable of engaging in sustained close combat in order to win the land battle.¹ Fundamental to CACI is the notion that the capacity of Australian Army soldiers to engage in close combat must be both ‘optimised’ and ‘sustainable’. While the provision of all classes of supply is important to optimising and sustaining the performance of soldiers engaged in close combat, the provision of Class 1 sustenance items, namely food and water, is vital to enhancing the capacity of soldiers to achieve enduring tactical success on the battlefield.

This article will attempt to provide an informed assessment to determine if Australian Army soldiers are being provided with the field rations that facilitate optimal performance over an extended period, optimising their capacity to achieve tactical success on the battlefield.

While no doubt an emotive issue, this article will refrain from a discussion of the palatability of the Australian Army Combat Ration Pack (CRP) as taste has no bearing on sustenance and nutrition but is based on personal opinion.

What Soldiers Need Versus What They Are Getting

Fundamental to providing an informed assessment of the nutritional value of the Australian Army CRP is to describe the aspects of nutrition that are required to maintain a soldier in a field environment in order to keep them ‘fighting fit’.

The average 21-year-old civilian male (178cm tall, 86kg, lightly active) is known to consume approximately 2700 calories on an average day. They have a diet of approximately 305g carbohydrates (45%), 105g of protein (30%) and 75g of fat (25%).² A 21-year-old infantry male soldier in the field, assuming they are of the same height and weight as the average civilian male, is expected to expend approximately 4000 calories a day. The requirement to consume an additional 1300 calories over and above that of the average civilian is due to the infantry soldier’s exposure to mental and physical stress, lack of sleep and large physical output with minimal rest periods.³

In order to maintain a soldier’s body weight, their intake of calories in the field environment/battlefield must match their 4000 calorie expenditure. If a soldier eats every item in an Australian Army CRP, which is exceedingly rare, they will consume approximately 2800 calories. This compares poorly to the United States Army Meal Ready to Eat (MRE), which contains approximately 3800 calories, the Mexican Army’s Comida de Combate Individual Diaria Para Soldados, which contains between 3600 and 4050 calories and the Columbian Army’s Ración de Campana, which contains between 3100 and 3300 calories.⁴

From a purely caloric perspective, not only will an Australian Army CRP not allow an average soldier to maintain their body composition but will force soldiers to go into a state described by nutritionists as ‘calorie deficit’, resulting in potentially dramatic weight loss and a decrease in fitness, strength and general wellbeing. Indeed, even if an Australian soldier consumes all of the contents of a CRP, it would mean that they suffer from a daily recommended calorie deficit of 1200 calories. Such an outcome is not conducive to optimising and sustaining the capacity of soldiers to achieve success in close combat.

Essential Nutrients

Vitamins and minerals play an important role in the health of a human, and their importance is often overlooked. Vitamins control chemical reactions that convert food into energy, and minerals primarily produce and regulate various hormones in the body. The body’s normal metabolism or ‘anabolic state’ is where the body recovers, increases fitness and potentially decreases fat. The opposite of this is to be in a catabolic state where the body does not recover, fitness decreases and fat potentially accumulates.⁵ In order to achieve anabolism, four important hormones are required, Human Growth Hormone (hGH), Testosterone, Insulin and InsulinLike Growth Factor-1 (IGF-1).

hGH increases calcium retention; increases and maintains muscle mass; stimulates the immune system; stimulates organ growth and repair, including the brain; and promotes protein synthesis.⁶

Testosterone is similar to hGH in recovery and maintaining wellbeing. It contributes to mental and physical energy, increases and maintains cardiovascular health, increases and maintains muscle size and strength, and muscle synthesis. Testosterone also plays a role in the regulation of the ‘fight or flight’ response to stressful situations, which may assist a soldier to maintain aggression.⁷

Insulin is a hormone that has extensive effects on metabolism and other body functions. Insulin causes cells in the liver, muscle and fat tissue to take up glucose from the blood, storing it as glycogen in the liver and muscle, which is then burned as energy. Insulin will also increase amino acid uptake and arterial muscle strength.

IGF-1, as its name suggests, is similar to Insulin, but in addition to insulin-like effects IGF-1 can also regulate cell growth and development, especially in nerve cells, as well as cellular DNA synthesis.

In addition to vitamins and minerals, our body requires three main macronutrients to provide energy and nutrients: carbohydrates, protein and fat. Carbohydrates serve as a human’s primary source of energy. There are 4.2 calories per gram of carbohydrate. They fuel all bodily functions and allow the body to operate. Carbohydrates are grouped into two categories: simple carbohydrates, which provide energy for short periods of time (such as glucose, sucrose, dextrose, found in confectionary); and complex carbohydrates, which take longer to digest (starches, such as breads and potatoes).

Protein is a part of every cell in the body, and no other nutrient plays as many different roles in keeping a human alive and healthy. Protein is responsible for the growth and repair of muscles, bones, skin, tendons, ligaments, hair, eyes and other tissues, and has the same 4.2 calories per gram as carbohydrates. It can also be used as an energy source, although not as effectively as the other two macronutrients.

Fats play a vital role in maintaining healthy skin and hair, insulating body organs against shock, maintaining body temperature and promoting healthy cell function. Vitamins A, D, E and K are fat soluble, which means they can only be digested, absorbed and transported in conjunction with consuming fats. Fats also serve as energy stores for the body, containing 9 calories per gram. They are broken down in the body to release glycerol and free fatty acids. The glycerol can be converted to glucose by the liver and thus used as an energy source.

Nutrient Deficiencies

As previously stated, the average 21-year-old civilian male requires around 305g carbohydrates, 105g protein and 75g fat to fulfil their daily requirement of 2700 calories. As a soldier will burn, on average, 4000 calories a day, they will need to increase those figures by about 150 per cent. This translates to about 450g carbohydrates, 150g protein and 110g fat.

The majority of soldiers do not consume all of the contents of a CRP. The importance of this observation cannot be overemphasised. The indicative consumption of a CRP contents over a 24-hour period ranges from 1400–1500 calories. Of this, about 960 calories (229g) are from carbohydrates (with an overly large portion of that being sugar), 145 calories (34.5g) from protein and 320 calories (35g) from fat. Assuming a soldier of average build eats the average amount of food from their CRP, they are deficient of 221g of carbohydrates, 115g of protein and 75g of fat for every day they spend consuming CRP.

The amount eaten is not enough to even sustain the average 21-year-old sedentary civilian, let alone a soldier digging in, conducting fire and movement, and patrolling with minimal sleep.

An often discussed issue with the CRP is the large amount of sugar it contains. The benefit of adding such a large amount of sugar is an easy increase in carbohydrates and calories. However, purely increasing sugar content is not adequate to support a hard working soldier. A high sugar diet increases the chance of type 2 diabetes, tooth decay and cancer, decreases the body’s production of the anabolic hormones Testosterone and hGH, and slows mental and muscular recovery. Complex carbohydrates differ from sugars as they release energy over a longer period of time.

Another problem with relying on sugar as a fuel source is its quick high, then equally quick low. During this low, the body becomes catabolic and burns muscle in an attempt to rectify the low blood sugar levels. Soldiers often make the mistake of trying to fix this problem by eating more sugar. The irregular spiking of blood sugar levels alters the normal release of Insulin and IGF-1, compounding the catabolic state the body is already in from poor diet and large calorie output. Coincidently, the screening test for diabetes involves drinking a sugary solution that contains the exact same amount of sugar as the high energy sports drink found in a CRP (75g of sugar). It has been shown that the diabetes test lowers Testosterone for several hours.⁸

In addition to the high amount of sugar, the CRP also provides food containing artificial sweeteners. These chemically lower the brain’s ability to interpret the total calories consumed. On a subconscious level, the soldier’s body will be unaware of the actual calories being consumed, making it harder for the soldier to maintain an adequate calorie intake. This is because the brain learns that it can gauge the calorie intake of food using characteristics, such as sweetness and viscosity. There are also a number of alleged side effects associated with consumption of artificial sweeteners including bloating, diarrhoea, nausea, skin irritations, wheezing, coughing, chest pains, heart palpitations, anxiety, anger, moods swings and depression.

Aside from the sugar levels, another important factor of the CRP is the level of salt. A person can lose 1–2g of salt per litre of sweat, and a soldier in the field can sweat a litre or more per hour. The total salt in a CRP is not listed in the nutritional information; however, it is estimated that an average soldier will only eat about 1–1.5g worth of salt from their CRP per day. As soldiers are not replacing salt lost through sweat, there is a salt deficiency, greatly increasing the chance of heat injuries. Salt is required for muscles to contract and nerves to send and receive signals. A diet too low in salt leads to muscle aches, muscle cramping, dehydration, deterioration of mental awareness, confusion, headaches, nausea and low blood pressure.⁹

From the analysis provided above, it is my perspective that the current Australian Army CRP is failing to provide the nutritional requirements fundamental to optimising the performance of a soldier conducting close combat over a sustained period. In some cases, the evidence I have presented suggests that the high sugar content of the CRP is actively undermining the endurance and aggression (a by-product of Testosterone) in our soldiers. The good news is that the quality of nutrition provided by the CRP could be readily enhanced.

The Solution

Essential to enhancing the nutritional value of the CRP is increasing the protein, complex carbohydrates, fat and salt content, and decreasing the content of sugars and artificial sweeteners. An increase in protein content in the form of protein supplements derived from milk will promote enhanced recovery from arduous physical and mental activity. Whey in powder or snack bar form, for example, will afford fast digesting protein to increase recovery during rest periods and would also be appropriate for times when slow digesting protein is required to maintain the recovery process, such as pre-sleep or during piquets. Enhanced complex carbohydrate content will facilitate sustained energy release, thereby optimising a soldier’s endurance. More fat will increase calorie intake and fat soluble vitamins. Increased salt content within pre-prepared foods will reduce the potential for heat illness and importantly, enhance the palatability of some meals.

Detailed below in Table 1 is an example CRP that rectifies the nutritional deficit defined previously. The crackers, muesli, tuna sachet, sports drink powder, two main meal sachets, salt 2g and tomato ketchup that feature in the extant CRP remain. However, the quantities of condensed milk, coffee and tea have all been halved. The M&Ms have been replaced with Peanut M&Ms. All other items listed in Table 1 are proposed additions to the extant CRP. These proposed additions have been bolded.

The nut mix would be a combination of salted peanuts, salted cashews, almonds, sunflower seeds and pumpkin seeds. This mix of nuts contains high amounts of what is often referred to as ‘healthy fats’. They are all high in Testosterone building nutrients such as Iron and Magnesium.

Table 1: Proposed new CRP menu

Protein Bar 1 would be comprised primarily of Whey Protein, which is a fast digesting protein. It also contains maltodextrin, which is a mid-range digesting carbohydrate, and would be ideal to consume in a time where recovery is most important, such as after the conduct of fire and movement. Protein Bar 2 is made of Casein, which is a much slower digesting protein. Importantly, it holds a higher fat content to further slow digestion. The optimal time to consume this item would be prior to sleep or during a low energy activity such as piquets.

Beef Jerky has been added due to its light weight and high ratio of protein, fat and sodium. The introduction of a multi-vitamin tablet would increase a soldier’s vitamin intake and would offset the nutrient deficit that is characteristic of prepackaged foods. The coffee and tea—or what is colloquially known as ‘brew gear’—has been halved. This is due to the fact that indicative use of this portion of the CRP suggests that at least half of the current ‘brew gear’ is discarded.

Over 130g of the total sugar is fructose, which comes primarily from the dried fruit. The benefit of this type of sugar is that, although fast digesting, it will not spike insulin levels like dextrose, glucose and sucrose.

If the changes to the CRP menu proposed in Table 1 were adopted, the nutritional value of the daily diet of the average soldier consuming CRP would increase from 299g of carbohydrates to 465g, 34.5g of protein to 185.5g, 35g of fat to 177.8g, more than double the salt from 1500mg to 3228mg, and increase the total calories from about 1500 to 4378. This represents a significant enhancement to the nutritional value of the CRP. Moreover, an additional benefit of the proposed changes would be a reduction in the weight of the CRP by half to approximately 1kg. This is increasingly important due to the increased armour, communication equipment and weapon systems a soldier is required to carry on patrol.

Additional Requirements

Fundamental to fully exploiting the nutritional enhancements to the CRP proposed in this paper is educating soldiers about basic nutrition, both in the barracks and field environments. In many cases, the key to optimising the value of what one is eating is knowing when to eat it. The Army should investigate employing qualified nutritionists who specialise in advising professional athletes on their diets to educate soldiers and officers as to how to optimise their nutrition and, therefore, optimising their health and output capacity in the barracks and field environments. Ideally, this training would be delivered during foundation courses at institutions such as the Army Recruit Training Centre and the Royal Military College. Nutritional awareness continuation training could then be delivered by qualified nutritionists at unit/formation level annually as part of the suite of annual mandatory briefs.

Conclusion

The central theme of the CACI is that the capacity of Australian Army soldiers to engage in close combat must be both ‘optimised’ and ‘sustainable’. Fundamental to achieving this is providing an optimal source of nutrition for our soldiers operating and fighting in the complex contemporary environment. The key means of delivering this sustenance is via the CRP. The evidence presented in this article outlines significant flaws in the current approach to providing nutrition that will not set up our soldiers for success when engaging in close combat. With some adjustment to the composition of the Australian Army’s CRP, and the introduction of an education program to empower our soldiers to maximise the value of their nutrition in the field and barracks environment, our Army can ensure that it is optimising the capacity of its soldiers to fight and win on the battlefield.

About the Author

Private Cameron Robison enlisted into the Army Reserve on 29 June 2004. He was allocated to RAInf and was posted to Alpha Company 2nd/17th Battalion, Royal New South Wales Regiment. He completed his recruit course at the Army Recruit Training Centre and the Infantry Initial Employment Training (IET) during 2004 and 2005 respectively. As a Reservist, Private Robison participated in Operation DELUGE and Operation TESTAMENT. Private Robison transferred to the Regular Army and was allocated to the 2nd Battalion, The Royal Australian Regiment in 2008. He is currently deployed with Alpha Company on Operation ASTUTE.

Private Robison completed his Certificates 3 and 4 in Fitness through the Australian Institute of Fitness. Following his completion of these qualifications, Private Robison established and now manages a successful business called ‘Body Blast Fitness Training’.

Endnotes

1    Adaptive Campaigning, The Land Force Response to Complex Warfighting, Department of Defence, Canberra, 2009.

2    ‘Calorie Needs for Men’, AnneCollins.com, <http://www.annecollins.com/calories/calorie-needs-men.htm&gt;; and ‘Estimated Calorie Requirements’, ExRx.net, <http://www.exrx.net/Calculators/CalRequire.html&gt;

3    Kaare Rodahl, ‘Nutritional Requirements in Cold Climates’ <http://jn.nutrition.org/cgi/reprint/53/4/575.pdf&gt;; Donna Feldman, ‘What Are Your Calorie Needs?’ TheDietChannel.com, 14 June 2007 <http://www.thedietchannel.com/what-are-your-calorie-needs&gt;; and ‘BMI Plus Calculator’, WebMD.com, <http://www.webmd.com/diet/calc-bmi-plus&gt;

4    The nutritional information for the food items already in the CRP as obtained from the information supplied in the packs and the information for the newly added items was obtained from the websites <http://www.nutritiondata.com&gt; and <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Field_ration&gt;

5    ‘What’s the difference between a catabolic and anabolic state?’, StraightHealth.com, <http://straighthealth.com/pages/qna/catabolic-anabolic.html&gt;

6    ‘HGH Report’ <http://hghlook.com&gt;; ‘What is HGH (Human Growth Hormone)?’ <http://www.hgh9.com&gt;

7    ‘Testosterone Deficiency: Overview’, HealthCommunities.com, <http://www.urologychannel.com/testosteronedeficiency/index.shtml&gt;; ‘Testosterone’, Wikipedia.com, <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Testosterone&gt;

8    ‘Manipulating your hormones’, BodyBuilding.com, <http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/inmag35.htm&gt;; James Norman, ‘Diabetes: What is Insulin?’, EndocrineWeb.com, <http://www.endocrineweb.com/diabetes/2insulin.html&gt;; ‘Definition of Insulin’, MedicineNet.com, <http://www.medterms.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=3989&gt;; ‘Introduction to Insulin-like Growth Factor Deficiency’, MagicFoundation.org, <http://www.magicfoundation.org/www/docs/10.802/&gt;; ‘IGF-1: The Test’, Lab Tests Online, <http://www.labtestsonline.org/understanding/analytes/igf1/test.html&gt;

9    ‘A low salt diet and healthy eating - low sodium foods’, DavidGregory.org, <http://www.davidgregory.org/salt.htm&gt;; ‘What Is Hyponatremia’, About. com, 5 May 2010, <http://sportsmedicine.about.com/od/hydrationandfluid/a/Hyponatremia.htm…;; ‘Hyponatremia (Low Sodium)’, Chemocare.com, <http://www.chemocare.com/managing/hyponatremia-low-sodium.asp&gt;