Official figures show the Body Mass Index – of military personnel records more than 11,000 soldiers, 4,300 sailors and 3,900 aircrew as being obese
Weight loss jabs are being prescribed to soldiers who have gone over the top with their diets. They were among 240 military personnel last year who were placed on the Mounjaro and Wegovy jabs to help them shift their excess fat.
The numbers on the specialist injections has more than trebled from the 73 who were prescribed the jabs in 2024.
Of the people given the injections last year 128 were in the army, 58 in the RAF and 54 in the Navy. A total of 46 were officers while the remaining 194 were in the lower ranks.
Separate data from the MoD show that hundreds of military personnel fail an annual fitness test.
The issue of staff being overweight leads to a handful of personnel being fired every year for being obese with some of these outgoing staff tipping the scales at more than 26stone.
There are also a string of people in the army whose waist measurement is more than 55ins with a small number of personnel given access to liposuction treatment to help with their weight issues.
Official figures show the Body Mass Index – of military personnel records more than 11,000 soldiers, 4,300 sailors and 3,900 aircrew as being obese.
However, the military says the BMI measurement is not an accurate gauge and that many of these people will have a much greater proportion of muscle rather than fat.
The statistics from the medical records of the nation’s military showed almost 6,000 fighting personnel were prescribed anti-depressants last year and 2,500 were given sleeping tablets.
Another 872 military personnel were prescribed Viagra, or similar drugs last year. Of these 409 were in the army, 239 in the Navy and the remaining 224 were in the RAF.
Philip Ingram, a former colonel in British Military Intelligence, said: “It is good to see the military using all of the tools available in their medical box to get service personnel fit again.
“It is more cost effective to fix already trained and experienced personnel than remove them and try and replace with fresh blood.
“Service personnel will suffer the same medical conditions as their civilian counterparts with some being even more prevalent because of the conditions many are forced to work in.”
A Ministry of Defence spokesperson said: “Only a small proportion of the Armed Forces are affected by obesity and, when identified, world class lifestyle, dietary and medical support is provided.
“There are wide range of initiatives available for personnel to improve fitness and lose weight. Weight loss drugs may be considered on a case-by-case basis, as part of a lifestyle and wellbeing programme.
“Safety remains paramount in the armed forces, comprehensive medical evidence is always required before any consideration is given to the introduction or expansion of use of medication for our personnel”.
