The active careers of servicemembers can vary. Some will be on active duty for four years while others may last over 20. Regardless of how long they wear the uniform, there is always more they can do for our nation and freedom.

Dr. Richele Corrado is living proof of this. She is currently working at Revolution Medicine, Health, & Fitness in Washington D.C., but her career in the medical field began in the United States Navy as a physician, but her biggest impact was after she transitioned to civilian life and worked for over 14 years in the military health system. The native of Hershey, PA, didn’t have any family members that served in the past that she knew of, but her own service and efforts now are rooted on intentions to make a difference.

“I have lots of energy and this desire to help others,” she said. “Ever since I was little, I knew I wanted to work in the world of medicine.”

Obesity is a Disease

Corrado has dedicated her focus to helping others combat obesity, which has become an issue within the military community. She said it is a disease that does not get the recognition it requires, nor do those affected by it get the proper treatment they deserve.

Corrado explained, “In medical school, we are not taught much about obesity.” As is the case with most diseases, however, it is not quite that simple, and Corrado is not the only one who sees obesity as a major issue that needs addressed. According to the Obesity Action Coalition, almost 93 million Americans are affected by obesity. That is a rate of nearly one in four people. Corrado is especially concerned about how it is affecting the servicemembers that are out in the field.

“If you’re not in the military, then sometimes you may not understand the dedications, struggles, and sacrifices that they go through in order to do that.”

Corrado started dedicating herself to this issue after she attended a workshop and felt a personal connection to it as someone who combatted body imaging issues in her 20’s. As she dove into the issue, she found that the first big hurdle is acknowledging obesity for what it truly is, a disease.

“Ever since day one in the military, they have been told that they need to eat less and move more, that they need to get up at 5 AM and just do it, that ‘if I can do it, you can do it,’ and for active duty members, it is so much harder.”

Factors that Corrado acknowledged as issues that make it easier to gain weight and much harder to lose it include lack of sleep, stress, anxiety, and even Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, among others. She also explained that servicemembers may get desperate to meet their targeted weights when they must do weigh-ins, and that means pushing themselves in training to the point of exhaustion.

“They will be going all out on their runs and wearing sweat suits or severely restricting their calorie intake, and that is actually causing them even more harm,” she stated. “That is combined with how nervous or anxious they are about this because they don’t want to get sent to body composition centers, which is known in some places as “fat camp.”

While the extreme tactics could result in them hitting a target weight for the day of weigh-ins, it is not helping their overall wellness and could be setting them up for further issues in the future. Corrado has dedicated herself to finding better short- and long-term ways that can not only help those wearing the nation’s cloth while on active duty but keep them healthy as they transition into veterans.

“The intersection of all these things really drove me to focusing more on this disease and how we can find better solutions.”

What Can Be Done To Help Serve Our Service Members?

Corrado has been proactive in spreading the message about obesity and proposing ways that can be helpful both for the servicemembers themselves as well as the military community at large. One of the first steps she feels needs to be taken is for leadership to acknowledge the issue for what it is, a disease, and realize that the old methods that have been in place need to be reevaluated for those serving now as well as those they want to join in the future.

“The military has a very big struggle with obesity, and it leads to issues with retention recruitment because only 23 percent of Americans age 17-24 are even eligible to serve in the military.”

Those that struggle with obesity could be more successful with proper medication. The issue is that policy can get in the way of that. Despite her helping write out new policies for the military on this issue, they are still pending and have yet to be approved or enacted as of this writing.

“I wrote out one policy six months ago, but it has yet to be finalized.”

The conflict with this is that other diseases can be treated with medication, and weight gain could be a side effect of those medicines. This makes the battle against obesity even harder for those on active duty that are trying to work on other health matters.

“The longer they go without the proper treatment, the worse it gets for them.”

There is also the food that servicemembers have access to. Corrado estimated that 70 to 80 percent of dining facilities have no control over the food they receive to serve, and many small shops only provide sugary foods and drinks. This is due to the funds they receive and how they are appropriated.

“We need to do more lobbying to Congress, and they need to change the ways the foods are appropriated.”

Corrado is also thinking ahead to post-military life when servicemembers go off active duty. Obesity is also an issue for veterans, and she feels combatting this matter now will lead to improvement both for them and those that work in the VA hospitals.

“There is such an opportunity to make a lot of good changes that would help them have better and longer active-duty careers as well as better lives afterwards, which could even help save costs for the VA.”

On a larger scale, Corrado advised that the stigma of obesity being a moral failing or the result of choices should also be erased. Whether it is due to the surroundings they had while growing up, such as the south where cleaning the plate was a must, or traumatic issues they faced through no fault of their own, or using those medications to treat other ailments and health matters, numerous factors contribute to obesity. Corrado feels that the sooner we break the stigma, the easier it can be to face it and combat it on both an individual level as well as on a larger scale.

“Sometimes they need more than the basics, and that is okay.”

That is why she has been very active in speaking at symposiums and trainings. She is directly trying to get the word out about the problems and solutions so the leaders and those on active duty have the best chances of success going forward. Her dedication and passion to combat obesity has already helped many in uniform, and she remains committed to speak out on this matter and work with us so they can go out and serve the country.

“One of the reasons we that work in medicine and the military stay in the field is because we are surrounded by so many amazing people. It has shaped my career and who I am.”

You can learn more about obesity issues and resources that can help by going to the Obesity Action Coalition website.

M&F Military Editor Rob Wilkins contributed to this article.