History of military nutrition in the United States facts for kids
The story of how the U.S. military has improved its soldiers' health and nutrition is quite interesting! It can be divided into seven main time periods, from when the country first started until today. Thanks to smart research and guidance from doctors and military experts, the food and its packaging have gotten much, much better over time.
How Military Food Research Began
The first official group for U.S. military nutrition research started in 1917. It was called the Food Division and its job was to "safeguard the nutritional interests of the Army." Today, the U.S. Army's nutrition research is led by the DoD Combat Feeding and Research Program (CFREP). This group provides the research and technology for all combat feeding systems. The Army also leads the Combat Research and Engineering Board (CFREB), which includes experts from the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, and Defense Logistics Agency.
Since 1986, the Military Nutrition Division at the U.S. Army Research Institute of Environmental Medicine (USARIEM) has been a leader in this field. They study the physical, physiological, and nutritional needs of modern military personnel.
Key Periods in Military Nutrition
1775–1917: Early Challenges and Discoveries
In 1775, the Continental Congress decided that soldiers in the Continental Army should get peas, beans, or other vegetables, plus milk. This was a big step! It showed they knew soldiers needed fresh food. However, in the late 1700s, it was hard to keep food fresh. Refrigeration and good preservation methods didn't exist yet. Because of this, fresh fruits and vegetables often spoiled before reaching soldiers. Many soldiers got sick or even died from diseases like scurvy, which is caused by a lack of vitamin C. This made soldiers unhealthy and unhappy.
General George Washington knew this was a problem. He wrote to Congress, suggesting they hire new people to fix the food supply. Congress then ordered that troops receive sauerkraut, vegetables, vinegar, beer, and cider.
A few decades later, Napoleon Bonaparte offered a prize for a way to preserve food for armies on the move. Nicholas Appert created a method to preserve food in airtight bottles. His preserved foods stayed fresh for months! Ten years later, Pierre Durand patented a similar idea using tin cans. By 1813, the British Army and Navy were using canned food.
During the American Civil War, it was still very hard to get enough food to the troops. Diseases like typhoid, diarrhea, and dysentery spread easily from contaminated water and food. Many soldiers died from these illnesses.
In 1861, the Army of Virginia published a cooking manual for soldiers called "Directions for Cooking by Troops in Camp and Hospital." Florence Nightingale wrote the content. The recipes focused on meat and milk for protein, and whole grains, fruits, and vegetables for energy. The first "US Family Food Guide" was published 35 years later, with similar advice.
Also in 1861, John Ordronaux published "Hints on the Preservation of Health in the Armies." This book had the first known diet guidelines for soldiers.
After the Civil War, the 1892 ration was created. It included fresh meat, fish, and vegetables. Even though food processing and preservation were getting better, food still spoiled over long distances or in hot places. During the Spanish–American War, many soldiers got very sick from rotten food. In 1892, Captain Charles Woodruff did the first military nutrition survey. He was called the "foremost student of the diet of the American soldier." He saw that Army rations were slowly getting better, but more research was needed.
Fresh foods didn't become widely available until World War I. New technologies made it possible to supply camps with fresh meats, eggs, dairy products, and vegetables. American soldiers overseas had generally good rations, but they often lacked dairy and vegetables. These problems were later solved with the "New Army Ration."
1917–1941: Learning from World War I
During World War I, there were food shortages for both soldiers and civilians. People noticed a lot of food was wasted at military training camps. The Food and Nutrition Division of the U.S. Army Medical Department was created in 1918. They started doing surveys to figure out how much food was needed and how to save money. They found that the regular rations gave soldiers too much food, were not balanced, and had too much fat. Based on this, a new "training ration" was developed to prevent waste.
The first Journal of Nutrition was published in 1928 by the American Institute of Nutrition (AIN). This was the first independent scientific group for nutrition researchers. An Army nutrition officer, John R. Murlin, helped start it.
Military nutrition research paused between World War I and World War II. However, the League of Nations created a Commission on Nutrition. This group made detailed recommendations based on good science. Their report stressed how important foods like green leafy vegetables, fruit, and milk were.
1941–1953: World War II and New Rations
During World War II, many new soldiers were not in good nutritional shape. To help, the National Academy of Sciences and the National Research Council created a group. This group set the minimum and safe amounts of nutrients people needed. They used available information to create a set of allowances for both civilians and military personnel. These allowances eventually became the Recommended Dietary Allowances.
The Medical Nutrition Laboratory (started in 1942) worked to develop and improve individual rations. These included the "D", "K", "C", Survival, and Emergency rations. By June 1945, the Army had 157 nutrition officers. Between 1941 and 1946, over 30 field surveys were done. They checked the health, performance, and nutrition of troops in different environments. In 1949, Congress approved building a new research facility in Natick, Massachusetts. This facility is now known as the U.S. Army Natick Soldier Research Development and Engineering Center.
1953–1974: Expanding Research and Public Impact
In 1958, two Army labs combined to form the U.S. Army Medical Research and Nutrition Laboratory (USAMRNL). This lab quickly became known as a top place for human nutrition research. They did many important studies. In 1973, the USAMRNL moved to San Francisco and became the Letterman Army Institute of Research (LAIR).
Meanwhile, in 1955, the Interdepartmental Committee on Nutrition for National Defense (ICNND) was formed to help with nutrition problems. In 1967, this group published a "Ten State Nutrition Survey." It looked at serious issues like hunger and malnutrition. The findings from this report led to big changes. They helped create the Food Stamp program (1974), nutrition programs for older people, the Women, Infants and Children (WIC) program (1972), the USDA school breakfast program (1975), and changes to military diets. It also led to the creation of NIH-funded Nutrition Research Centers.
1974–1980: Deepening Our Understanding
The Letterman Army Institute of Research (LAIR) was a leader in military nutrition research. They studied many areas like medicine, optics, toxicology, and nutrition in the late 1970s. Their nutrition research focused on new ways to measure nutrient intake, finding contaminants in food, checking if soldiers' diets were good enough, and looking at changes in military dining halls. Scientists also studied how specific nutrients like vitamin A, vitamin C, carbohydrates, thiamin, and iron worked.
Even though their main focus was military needs, scientists at LAIR also helped us understand general nutrition for the human body. They set recommendations for water, vitamins, and minerals. They also gave insights into what happens when people don't get enough calories.
In the late 1970s, there were talks about stopping the nutrition research program at LAIR. Dr. Allan L. Forbes strongly argued to keep it going. He said it would be "tragic" to lose such a great research facility. Despite their efforts, the Army Nutrition Research Program was paused in 1980. All its resources were moved to the USDA's Western Human Nutrition Research Center in Davis, California.
1980–1986: Rebuilding and New Rations
Even though the Army Research Program was paused, the Department of Defense kept doing nutrition research. In the early 1980s, some military nutrition studies continued at places like the Naval Health Research Center, the Naval Submarine Medical Research Laboratory, and the Natick Research and Development Laboratories.
A group called the Advisory Board on Military Personnel Supplies (ABMPS) noticed that military food programs weren't paying enough attention to nutrition. So, funding was given to create the Committee on Military Nutrition Research (CMNR) in 1982. Since then, the CMNR has published over 50 reports. These reports give advice and recommendations to the Department of Defense on nutrition priorities.
During the 1980s, new feeding systems were created. These included MREs (Meals Ready to Eat) and T rations. MREs are complete meals in flexible pouches. They replaced the older, less good "C-Rations." The "T" ration was a heat-and-serve tray-pack. It gave soldiers a hot meal option when cooks weren't available. In 1983, tests began to see if MREs were good enough for long-term use. These tests raised concerns about weight loss.
After these trials, a new military nutrition research group called the Nutrition Task Force was started at the U.S. Army Research Institute of Environmental Medicine. One of their first goals was to do a big field test of rations. They wanted to see how well soldiers accepted and ate the rations over long periods. The late 1980s saw more investment in military nutrition research. In 1986, the Nutrition Task Force became the Military Nutrition Division.
1986–Present: Modern Advances and Soldier Performance
In 1986, the U.S. Army once again took the lead in military nutrition science. This was overseen by the Department of Defense Combat Feeding and Research Program (CFREP). This program provides the research and technology for combat feeding systems. Since then, the Military Nutrition Division at the U.S. Army Research Institute of Environmental Medicine (USARIEM) has been at the forefront. They research the physical, physiological, and nutritional needs of modern military personnel.
The Military Nutrition Division works with the Pennington Biomedical Research Center. Together, they have made many scientific breakthroughs. They now understand better the energy and nutritional needs of healthy people in extreme environments. They have also helped improve food databases and created weight control programs for soldiers. This partnership has also led to research on performance-enhancing ration components (PERCs). These can improve human performance by at least 15%! This research led to products like the HOOAH! energy bar and the ERGO (Energy Rich Glucose Optimized) energy drink.
In the 1990s, several nutrition studies were done. These included studies on how nutrition affects the immune system, how nutrition can prevent disease during stressful training, and how energy balance affects disease resistance. The study on energy balance directly led to changes in food allowances for U.S. Army Ranger Training and other intense programs.
Thanks to modern research, we now know the exact food and hydration needs for soldiers working in high altitudes and extreme temperatures. Working with scientists at the Pennington Biomedical Research Center, the Military Nutrition Division at USARIEM continues to improve ration technologies. They address nutrition concerns, create new programs for soldier weight management, and generally help soldiers perform their best through military nutrition research.
