# MREs not providing adequate nutrition



## Paddlefoot (Jan 24, 2007)

http://www.fcw.com/article97397-01-18-07-Web



> *BY Bob Brewin
> Published on Jan. 18, 2007*
> 
> Marines deployed in Afghanistan are not getting adequate nutrition from the Defense Department’s standard combat ration, Meals Ready to Eat, the Marine Corps Center for Lessons Learned (MCLL) said in its January newsletter.
> ...



I can't believe this is still a problem 15 years after I left the service. MREs are perhaps the most unbalanced food items I've ever ingested. I'm not surprised that these guys are losing anywhere from 20-40 lbs out there. I probably lost somewhere between 40-50 during my deployment. 

There has got to be a better way to ensure adequate nutrition in the field. Maybe they can set aside the funds for one F-22 to get a handle on this problem.


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## EATIII (Jan 24, 2007)

Paddlefoot said:


> http://www.fcw.com/article97397-01-18-07-Web
> 
> 
> 
> ...



Are you nuts,if you ate 3 Mre's a day you are more than good to go.These are not the Mre's of the 80's or the 90's,I think to carry all of them is Fucked,Thats why we always striped our Meals.I think the Prob was lack of MRE'S.Just my:2c:


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## pardus (Jan 24, 2007)

Ive yet to see field rations better than the ones I had back in NZ, plenty of food, tasty and nutritious.

I did an exercise with the Aussies once, our first meal post ex, they let us in and we noticed very quickly the cooks were telling people off for taking more than we were allowed back home, so the boys piled the food on.
We completely emptied the kitchen before the SNCOs and Os even had a look in 

Apparently we ate more than the standard aussie soldiers...


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## poison (Jan 24, 2007)

I heard you Kiwis eat Aussies for breakfast, whole.:eek:


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## EATIII (Jan 24, 2007)

poison said:


> I heard you Kiwis eat Aussies for breakfast, whole.:eek:


Only if their is a little wool


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## pardus (Jan 24, 2007)

LOL.


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## Boondocksaint375 (Jan 24, 2007)

The only thing that MREs have a lot of it calories! I still stay away from them likethe plague, bleh:bleh:


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## RustyShackleford (Jan 25, 2007)

They had to conduct a study to figure this shit out?  I could have told them that when I was walking up and down the same damn mountains in 2002 and lost 15 or so lbs.


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## Boondocksaint375 (Jan 25, 2007)

RustyShackleford said:


> I could have told them that when I was walking up and down the same damn mountains in 2002 and lost 15 or so lbs.


 

Well that doesnt count, not like you were given three a day..... well maybe you were a chow thief    LOL


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## RustyShackleford (Jan 25, 2007)

Boondocksaint375 said:


> Well that doesnt count, not like you were given three a day..... well maybe you were a chow thief    LOL



Uhh, I'm talking about Afghanistan, not the school that it took you an enlistment to graduate from! :eek:


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## Boondocksaint375 (Jan 25, 2007)

fuck off. lol


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## Paddlefoot (Jan 25, 2007)

EATIII said:


> Are you nuts,if you ate 3 Mre's a day you are more than good to go.These are not the Mre's of the 80's or the 90's,I think to carry all of them is Fucked,Thats why we always striped our Meals.I think the Prob was lack of MRE'S.Just my:2c:



Maybe it is more related to shortages, but I kid you not, I ate those meals constantly, as well as food from the field kitchen for dinner and also ate off the local market.

I lost 20 pounds by December, and after we went to a straight MRE diet in January, I was eating nothing but MREs for the next 10 weeks. For whatever reason, my body was not getting adequate nutrition, whether it was a metabolization issue or something else. I'll admit sometimes I was so busy that I probably skipped a meal or two, but not so many that I would have lost that much weight. Those meals sucked in so many ways.

Then there was the constipation problem, which took on gastronomic proportions toward the end. There simply was not enough fiber and roughage to facillitate a decent bowel movement. 

Here's a scary scenario, and one of those situations where, if I had suffered a serious abdominal injury or a penetrating wound into my upper or lower GI tract, would have meant curtains for me. When I finally got to Khobar towers, and had a couple of decent meals with some roughage added in the form of vegetables, I finally took the dump of my life.

I filled, and flushed, the bowl three times before I was through. I hope I never experience a three flush dump ever again.


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## Chopstick (Jan 25, 2007)

Paddlefoot said:


> When I finally got to Khobar towers, and had a couple of decent meals with some roughage added in the form of vegetables, I finally took the dump of my life.
> 
> I filled, and flushed, the bowl three times before I was through. I hope I never experience a three flush dump ever again.


OMFG..Im really sorry..but this made me laugh so hard..Im just infantile.


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## EATIII (Jan 25, 2007)

Paddlefoot said:


> Maybe it is more related to shortages, but I kid you not, I ate those meals constantly, as well as food from the field kitchen for dinner and also ate off the local market.
> 
> I lost 20 pounds by December, and after we went to a straight MRE diet in January, I was eating nothing but MREs for the next 10 weeks. For whatever reason, my body was not getting adequate nutrition, whether it was a metabolization issue or something else. I'll admit sometimes I was so busy that I probably skipped a meal or two, but not so many that I would have lost that much weight. Those meals sucked in so many ways.
> 
> ...



Now an't that the SHIT! To funny.See maby its me,When I eat MRE'S I dont shit for 3 or 4 Days then it's oh Mama,Feels like Johny the Wad is in the House.Then the Cycle Repeates itself.


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## Paddlefoot (Jan 25, 2007)

EATIII said:


> Now an't that the SHIT! To funny.See maby its me,When I eat MRE'S I dont shit for 3 or 4 Days then it's oh Mama,Feels like Johny the Wad is in the House.Then the Cycle Repeates itself.



Same here, but for some reason it never cleared out completely. Prior to Khobar, the biggest dump I took was in the fertile crescent, which is now even more fertile...at least in the one square foot area I dug my hole.  



Chopstick said:


> OMFG..Im really sorry..but this made me laugh so hard..Im just infantile.



Chop, spend enough time in the field and you'll find yourself interested in all kinds of bodily functions you previously took for granted.

In retrospect, it is kind of funny. In a dark humor kind of way.


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## Queen Beach (Jan 25, 2007)

So dose Jenny Craig and Weight Watchers take their diet plan from the Military?

I am surprised that there would be that much weight loss by eating meals that are supposed to sustain our troops.  Then again every"body" is different.  I would imagine if they were that good at wight loss the Military could start it's own fad diet plan and make a profit center off of eating MRE's and extensive PT'ing.


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## digrar (Jan 25, 2007)

poison said:


> I heard you Kiwis eat Aussies for breakfast, whole.:eek:



Yeah, not likely.  

Looking forward to the All Blacks SOP of choking come World Cup time.


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## Typhoon (Jan 26, 2007)

> I filled, and flushed, the bowl three times before I was through. I hope I never experience a three flush dump ever again.


Hehehehehehehehehe....  I am sorry Paddlefoot, but that is just too damn funny!

My guys lost a tremendous amount of weight in the 'stan. I thought it was due to the physical exertion, heat, dehydration, and loss of appetite rather than bad nutrition...I will have to ask them what the deal was on that one...


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## pardus (Jan 26, 2007)

digrar said:


> Yeah, not likely.
> 
> Looking forward to the All Blacks SOP of choking come World Cup time.



Big talk don't mean shit, action does. ;)

I'm looking forward to the world cup, I haven't seen a game for years now.

As for Feild Rations, our guys used to steal them, take excess home etc... they were so good people wanted them.


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## Paddlefoot (Jan 26, 2007)

Typhoon said:


> Hehehehehehehehehe....  I am sorry Paddlefoot, but that is just too damn funny!
> 
> My guys lost a tremendous amount of weight in the 'stan. I thought it was due to the physical exertion, heat, dehydration, and loss of appetite rather than bad nutrition...I will have to ask them what the deal was on that one...



Typhoon, we travelled over to Saudi by ship and we're accompanied by an SF medic who at that point in his career was a physicians assistant assigned to the hospital at Stewart.

He told us about a deployment he was on once where everybody on the team contracted dysentary and some other maladies. Finally, one of the guys had a solid bowel movement. He said everybody gathered around to pay homage to the turd. I think he was only half joking.

Now *that* was funny.


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## WillBrink (Jan 27, 2007)

Boondocksaint375 said:


> The only thing that MREs have a lot of it calories! I still stay away from them likethe plague, bleh:bleh:





Not that they couldn't be improved, but are MRE's not intended as temporary food? What's the max time they intended people to use them exclusive? It took them something like 4 studies at Natick and Walter Reed to come out with "cutting edge" caffeine gum, so I don't generally put much stock in their choices for stuff to add to MRE's and such. 

Regardless, I had thought they were essentially designed as the minimum nutrition troops could live off of for some short period of time. Is that a wrong assumption? I would recommend to all troops, especially SOF who may have to operate without much support for extended periods of time to pack a decent multi vitamin to go along with their MREs, etc. They don't take up much room or weight and at least will prevent nutrient deficiencies not related to a lack of calories.


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## Looon (Jan 27, 2007)

My understanding is that they weren't designed for nutrition, but to give energy to a soldier in the field, and so you wouldn't starve to death.

They have to be supplemented with real chow.:uhh:


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## Paddlefoot (Jan 27, 2007)

WillBrink said:


> Not that they couldn't be improved, but are MRE's not intended as temporary food? What's the max time they intended people to use them exclusive?





Ranger Luna said:


> My understanding is that they weren't designed for nutrition, but to give energy to a soldier in the field, and so you wouldn't starve to death.
> 
> They have to be supplemented with real chow.:uhh:



Here is a section from the Army's own Regulation 40-25:



> b. The MRE may be consumed as the sole ration for up to 21 days. After 21 days, other appropriate rations (for example, the UGR-A, UGR-H&S) will be included in the daily mix of rations. This policy is based on extensive
> biochemical evaluations of soldiers consuming MREs for 30 days during field training. No degradation of performance
> or nutritional deficit was found before 21 days. When the MRE is the sole ration, units will provide supplements and
> enhancements (for example, bread, milk, and fresh fruit) whenever feasible.



I subsisted on that crap for 10 weeks straight with no supplements, and I'm sure I'm not the only one who has gone over the 21 day limit suggested in the regs. I know, troops in the past have had it just as bad or worse. Still, there are better field rations out there. Just ask the French, who have some of the best rations of any Army. T-Rats are a little better, but even they have their drawbacks.

An Army travels on its stomach, and that holds just as true today as it did at any time in history. If a soldier does have to go with MREs for an extended period of time, then perhaps the folks charged with creating these foodstuffs can come up with supplementals to augment the MRE, as well as counteract some of the negative effects on the body. The Army is supposed to be doing that already, but I know from experience that I received no bread, milk or fresh fruit during that 10 week period. I'll bet it's even worse for the Marines.


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## Looon (Jan 27, 2007)

21 days, that's fucking rediculous. :bleh: 

During OJC, after each mission we got hot AF chow before we went back out. If I remember correctly.:uhh: 

I see absolutely no reason why it's not that way now.:doh:


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## Looon (Jan 27, 2007)

It must be logistical laziness on the COC's part. Im sure it's easier to pass out MRE's than it is to arrange for a hot meal.:uhh:


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## Sigi (Jan 27, 2007)

Why not add multivitamins to each MRE?


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## 104TN (Jan 27, 2007)

A multivitamin wouldn't even come close to filling in the nutrition deficit experience by soldiers in the field. 

When I hit the woods now I take sunflower seeds, jerky, Progresso or Campbell's in a bag, a Camelbak full of Gatorade and Emergen-C mix, and lots of PowerBars. I come back feeling a lot better than I ever did wolfing MREs too.


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## x SF med (Jan 27, 2007)

Yeah, right - 21 day limit.  45 days at a time, and that was version I MREs, we had LRRPs and C's leftover from VN/WWII  - Ham and MoFo's were second worst only to Eggs, Chopped with Ham.   BLECH, PTOOI, YUCH, SPIT:bleh:


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## Chopstick (Jan 27, 2007)

RLK said:


> A multivitamin wouldn't even come close to filling in the nutrition deficit experience by soldiers in the field.
> 
> When I hit the woods now I take sunflower seeds, jerky, Progresso or Campbell's in a bag, a Camelbak full of Gatorade and Emergen-C mix, and lots of PowerBars. I come back feeling a lot better than I ever did wolfing MREs too.


Why arent these types of things incorporated into the meals then instead of what they are providing now?  Seems to me they have had plenty of time to listen to the troops and tweak the contents?  Being a civi person we always hear in news reports how great these MREs are for the troops.  I had no idea what a problem this was.


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## Looon (Jan 27, 2007)

Chopstick said:


> Why arent these types of things incorporated into the meals then instead of what they are providing now? Seems to me they have had plenty of time to listen to the troops and tweak the contents? Being a civi person we always hear in news reports how great these MREs are for the troops. I had no idea what a problem this was.


It's only a problem if that is all you eat them for extended periods of time.


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## Paddlefoot (Jan 27, 2007)

Chopstick said:


> Why arent these types of things incorporated into the meals then instead of what they are providing now?  Seems to me they have had plenty of time to listen to the troops and tweak the contents?  Being a civi person we always hear in news reports how great these MREs are for the troops.  I had no idea what a problem this was.



MREs are a subsistence ration, fortified to provide energy, but they really don't meet the true nutritional demands that are required for extended periods in the field.

Even with a field kitchen set up and eating only one MRE for lunch, I wound up losing 20 pounds over the first 5 months. Not too bad, but I was starting to feel the strain of not getting the proper nutrition.

I lost that much weight, and more, in the 2 1/2 months that I subsisted on MREs only. Not to mention some of the aforementioned side effects in my previous posts. 

This isn't a high priority issue in the Pentagon. They've got their hands full producing fighters and other equipment for the last war. A lot of lip service gets paid to 'providing the best' for the troops. I find a lot of it rings hollow.


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## Chopstick (Jan 27, 2007)

Paddlefoot said:


> This isn't a high priority issue in the Pentagon. They've got their hands full producing fighters and other equipment for the last war. A lot of lip service gets paid to 'providing the best' for the troops. I find a lot of it rings hollow.


That really pisses me off. 
So would you say that this is another issue to support shorter deployments?  Aside from everything else..basic nutrition and health seems to be compromised.  I know its a war..but as someone stated earlier here..an army marches on its stomach.


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## Paddlefoot (Jan 27, 2007)

Ranger Luna said:


> It's only a problem if that is all you eat them for extended periods of time.



Right, that needs to be pointed out. For short periods MREs are fine, but anything over a month is pushing it.


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## WillBrink (Jan 27, 2007)

RLK said:


> A multivitamin wouldn't even come close to filling in the nutrition deficit experience by soldiers in the field.
> 
> When I hit the woods now I take sunflower seeds, jerky, Progresso or Campbell's in a bag, a Camelbak full of Gatorade and Emergen-C mix, and lots of PowerBars. I come back feeling a lot better than I ever did wolfing MREs too.



Speaking of nutrient deficiencies in the face of "adequate" nutrition, from a report I wrote:

Relating directly to SpecWar units, a study called "Magnesium, Zinc and Copper status of 270 US Navy Sea, Air and Land (SEAL) trainees" conducted by the US Department of Military Medicine, demonstrated that the blood concentrations of magnesium and zinc were significantly below the normal range for 23% and 24% of the trainees, respectively4. Another study done by the US Army examined thirty soldiers engaged in a 30 day war simulation exercise.  Over the 30 days the soldiers consumed nutritionally adequate food (A rations). During the month, the soldiers lost weight, serum zinc levels declined, and urinary zinc excretion increased. Weight loss was positively correlated with the zinc loss. The authors noted that 

"The depressed serum zinc concentration could not be explained by the parameters measured." 

Therefore it looks like supplementation with the right amount of zinc (as well as magnesium5) may improve the health and performance of soldiers under these intense conditions. It’s important to note this study shows that soldiers have reductions in zinc status even in the face of adequate food intakes.


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## 104TN (Jan 27, 2007)

Guess there is something to eating those match-heads after all.


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## Chopstick (Jan 27, 2007)

RLK said:


> Guess there is something to eating those match-heads after all.


you eat matches??:doh:


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## x SF med (Jan 27, 2007)

Yes, you eat matches -keeps the creepy crawlies off, and the ticks from attaching themselves to you.  2 matchheads, 3x a day.


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## x SF med (Jan 27, 2007)

We did forget to mention the other side effects of MREs, bricks.


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## gryfen (Jan 27, 2007)

> Bricks.....


 
That's a side effect of something?


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## Chopstick (Jan 27, 2007)

wtf kind of dental plan do you have??:eek:


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## x SF med (Jan 27, 2007)

gryfen said:


> That's a side effect of something?



30+ days in the field eating nothing but MREs, yup, bricks (as in shitting, 1 ea.) are a definite side effect, no matter how much water you drink.  We had cases where aftwe 40+ day field exercises, whole teams were admitted to the Hospital because of the effects of MREs on the digestive system - usually after water deprived exercises.  Ugly, really, really ugly.


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## 104TN (Jan 27, 2007)

Doc, look into Senna. You can get like 200 softgels for 6 bucks at most vitamin/supplement stores.


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## gryfen (Jan 27, 2007)

> Doc, look into Senna. You can get like 200 softgels for 6 bucks at most vitamin/supplement stores.


And whatever you do, don't be more'n an arms length from the toilet for the next day or so.

RLK, you are a _mean_ animal. 

Doc, sorry, I was just being a smartass.  Truth is:  I am one of those rotten bastards with a blessed gut. MRE's don't have that 'brick' effect on me. ..... But let me get ahold of a chili-mac and I'll clear out a GP Medium. ;)


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## Kiwi1988 (Jan 28, 2007)

x SF med said:


> 30+ days in the field eating nothing but MREs, yup, bricks (as in shitting, 1 ea.) are a definite side effect, no matter how much water you drink.  We had cases where aftwe 40+ day field exercises, whole teams were admitted to the Hospital because of the effects of MREs on the digestive system - usually after water deprived exercises.  Ugly, really, really ugly.



LOL what bowel obstructions, thats bad. :bleh:


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## rangerpsych (Jan 28, 2007)

I don't know what the deal is, but the medical community in the military has known, and it's part of what the spoons should know as well, that MRE's are NOT recommended for continual consumption. Last I heard, 30 days was the max you were supposed to be on MRE's straight, for health reasons.

We had T-rats at our FOB for a reason, and it wasn't for the taste.


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## x SF med (Jan 28, 2007)

If we couldn't carry it or get it dropped grey, we didn't have it, and our stuff would drag on....


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## Looon (Jan 28, 2007)

As far as the 'brick' issue goes, it's supposed to have that affect. You don't want to be taking a dump every few hours while in the field. They are disigned to plug you up to some degree.:uhh: 

After 30 days, taking a shit would be like giving birth to a really big turd outta your ass.:bleh:


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## Paddlefoot (Jan 28, 2007)

x SF med said:


> 30+ days in the field eating nothing but MREs, yup, bricks (as in shitting, 1 ea.) are a definite side effect, no matter how much water you drink.  We had cases where aftwe 40+ day field exercises, whole teams were admitted to the Hospital because of the effects of MREs on the digestive system - usually after water deprived exercises.  Ugly, really, really ugly.



Right on, 70 days here and and my digestive system took a beating. 

Had operations continued, I think I would have been good for maybe another 3-4 weeks, but that would have pushing it. 

Other than supplementing the MREs, did you or any of your fellow medics come up with something to work around the deficiencies inherent in eating that ration for lengthy periods?



Ranger Luna said:


> As far as the 'brick' issue goes, it's supposed to have that affect. You don't want to be taking a dump every few hours while in the field. They are disigned to plug you up to some degree.:uhh:
> 
> After 30 days, taking a shit would be like giving birth to a really big turd outta your ass.:bleh:



Yep, there's that to take into consideration, but if you've got enough of that waste backing up and you suffer a perforated bowel or take a hit to the abdomen, it's going to be trouble. Maybe one of the medics can relate how long before you suffer something along the lines of septis or septic shock. Your insides would be swimming in nasty stuff at that point.

In that regard, you're screwed. Another day in the life of one of Uncle Sam's kids. I wouldn't be surprised if I still have a couple of chunks of corned beef hash floating around in me somewhere.:eek: :eek:


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## x SF med (Jan 28, 2007)

Ranger Luna said:


> After 30 days, taking a shit would be like giving birth to a really big turd outta your ass.:bleh:



Telephone pole, Bro.



> Other than supplementing the MREs, did you or any of your fellow medics come up with something to work around the deficiencies inherent in eating that ration for lengthy periods?



Lots of water if available - anything but MREs/Cs/LRRPs - we carried rice, beef jerky, peanut butter, granola, raisins, everything but prunes.  Nothing really helped, even mineral oil was a failure.  Like the esteemed RangerLuna said - they were designed that way.  Probably by some sadistic GS fuck at Natick.



> Maybe one of the medics can relate how long before you suffer something along the lines of septis or septic shock.



Peritonitis can set in minutes or hours after a bowel perforation, it depends on the concetration and make up of the flora and fauna in the digestive tract, and if the immune system is deficient from long periods in the field, minutes is probably a better estimate.  Although with the compacted bowel contents from a diet exclusively of MREs, you might have an hour.


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## Chopstick (Jan 28, 2007)

I think all the members of congress should have to subsist on these things for 70 days..watch how fast things change.  That is after they are finished shitting those bricks.  That would be a whoooooole lotta shit.:bleh:


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## Kurt V (Jan 28, 2007)

I think this has always been the norm for field rations. Even the old C-rations weren't meant for 3 meals a day for indefinite periods of time. They were also guaranteed to plug you up after about 3 days.


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## LibraryLady (Jan 28, 2007)

Kurt V said:


> I think this has always been the norm for field rations. Even the old C-rations weren't meant for 3 meals a day for indefinite periods of time. They were also guaranteed to plug you up after about 3 days.


 
Didn't really notice a difference between C's and the first MRE's when it came to this aspect of eating them, seems they all plugged you up.  

Was just glad I got a truck filled with med gear and dog crates I could stash the extras in for, ahem, regularity...  ;)  

LL


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## chef (Jan 29, 2007)

here's a question. Does the Army still have cooks? I'm under the impression that they did away with 94b's and have gone to all civilian contractors even over the pond.?
Don't they know how to mermite chow to the front lines anymore? Christ when I think of the 36 hours periods without sleep making bisquits from scratch in the middle of February in Korea my bones hurt!
MRE's DO NOT sub for real food. the preservatives used will do permanent damage to the palette, liver, kidney's and a host of other body parts and functions. Not to mention the losning of your teeth!:bleh: 

X SF Med - Yes we are there! Remember the 9 second DZ at Devens?! And the drops past the phone jack?


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## DoctorDoom (Feb 1, 2007)

That matchhead old wives' tale still floating around? :)

I ate MRE's for 3 weeks twice a day, not only gained weight but never had a problem pooping.  Never have I been so grateful for my naturally fast intestinal transit time.  Some of the others got bound up pretty bad... fiber supplementation seemed to help quite a bit, which is what seemed to be missing from the MRE's.  That and dehydration was bad juju.


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## Paddlefoot (Feb 1, 2007)

Chopstick said:


> OMFG..Im really sorry..but this made me laugh so hard..Im just infantile.



I was watching Seinfeld the other night, the one where George is double dipping his chip at the wake, and his girlfriend's brother Timmy calls him on it. I was able to mine a little humor, as always, from the show and apply it to this thread... 



> [_George and Timmy are in separate stalls in the latrine_...]
> 
> Timmy: What are you doing?
> 
> ...


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## rv808 (Feb 1, 2007)

Ahh....how I will enjoy my three MREs a day for the next week.....


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## x SF med (Feb 1, 2007)

rv808 said:


> Ahh....how I will enjoy my three MREs a day for the next week.....



A week - g'way, doesn't even count, esp. with 3 a day.  Do you at least have to carry them in a ruck along with full operational Dgear?  :uhh:


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## rv808 (Feb 2, 2007)

x SF med said:


> A week - g'way, doesn't even count, esp. with 3 a day.  Do you at least have to carry them in a ruck along with full operational Dgear?  :uhh:



Negative......humvees will carry them.  It gets worse...more than a few are complaining about having no heat in the tents haha....


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## Looon (Feb 2, 2007)

rv808 said:


> Negative......humvees will carry them. It gets worse...more than a few are complaining about having no heat in the tents haha....


hahaahahahahahaaa:doh:


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## x SF med (Feb 2, 2007)

Ranger Luna said:


> hahaahahahahahaaa:doh:




All Verified SOF  -  when do we kill them>:{ , all of them, no mercy, no shame - just cut their heads off and put them on spikes outside our hooches?:huh?: 

OOOOOHHHHHH!!!  real soldiers - humvees and tents.  That ain't a field ex, that's a night drinking in the woods.:doh:


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## Marauder06 (Feb 2, 2007)

rv808 said:


> Negative......humvees will carry them.  It gets worse...more than a few are complaining about having no heat in the tents haha....



If it's no heat in Afghanistan in the winter, I'd complain too! :eek:


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## Paddlefoot (Mar 28, 2007)

*Good piece from the Chicago Tribune*

I thought I would post this up, I almost missed it from Sunday's edition. A couple of the passages I've highlighted in bold italics. 



> Field rations letting U.S. troops down
> 
> *By Aamer Madhani*
> Tribune national correspondent
> ...



The Tribune food critic wrote a sidebar piece accompanying this article, and the various MRE food items he reviewed failed miserably. I'm going to send him an e-mail outlining my own MRE horror story.


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## gryfen (Mar 28, 2007)

do you have a weblink for that Tribune sidebar....or the website for the publication?


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## Polar Bear (Mar 28, 2007)

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/chi-0703250326mar25,0,2040487.story?coll=chi-news-hed

This what you looking for?


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## LibraryLady (Mar 28, 2007)

> The First Strike Ration, about a half-pound heavier than the MRE, is smaller and contains about 2,500 calories. But the ration is *only meant to be consumed for three consecutive days*, according to rules set by the Army surgeon general.


 
Fat lotta good this is gonna be!

 

LL


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## gryfen (Mar 28, 2007)

Got a bit of a laugh out of this.....I didn't realize they tasted _that_ bad:


			
				Our food critic's reaction: These rations are MR-ick said:
			
		

> By Phil Vettel
> Tribune restaurant critic
> Published March 25, 2007
> 
> ...


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## Paddlefoot (Mar 28, 2007)

LibraryLady said:


> Fat lotta good this is gonna be!
> 
> The First Strike Ration, about a half-pound heavier than the MRE, is smaller and contains about 2,500 calories.* But the ration is only meant to be consumed for three consecutive days*, according to rules set by the Army surgeon general.
> 
> ...



The current regs state that a soldier should not subsist on a straight MRE diet for more than 21 days, and even then should be getting supplemented with fruit, vegetables, milk and bread.

If the current MREs are as bad as they are for regular subsistence, just how bad will these First Strike Rations be?

Of course, we all know the chain of command would never let a troop in the field go for 21 days without a decent, hot meal, much less 3 whole days.


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## Polar Bear (Mar 28, 2007)

Just go back to the old MRE's dehydrated pork patty, corn beef and hash etc


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## Paddlefoot (Mar 29, 2007)

It is always going to be tough to produce a decent field ration, one that can survive the extremes that they are subjected to in various environments.

But, I think the good folks at Natick are up to the task. I would suggest they look to other solutions, other than the primary spec of having a long shelf life. Perhaps a ration that has a shorter shelf life is in order, with a better production shedule institued so that when these are needed, things can be ramped up as circumstances dictate.

Of course, these contracts are sweetheart deals to begin with. The guy that owned the company down in McCallen, TX was a heavy hitter with the Reagan Administration, and he made untold millions on the crap he produced. I always avoided the MREs from McCallen whenever possible.


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## LibraryLady (Mar 29, 2007)

Paddlefoot said:


> Of course, these contracts are sweetheart deals to begin with. The guy that owned the company down in McCallen, TX was a heavy hitter with the Reagan Administration, and he made untold millions on the crap he produced. I always avoided the MREs from McCallen whenever possible.


 
How could you tell the difference?

LL


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## AWP (Mar 29, 2007)

IIRC, the packages are marked with where they were made.


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## Paddlefoot (Mar 29, 2007)

Yea, they always had the city of origin stamped on the outside. 

No date of manufacture, though. Not that it would matter, I'll bet the older MREs got better with age.

*"Would you like some 10 year old peanut butter on that 12 year old cracker?"*  

I just sent a long letter to Phil Vettel, the Tribune food critic. I read his stuff all the time, I suggested to him he do a taste off and nutritional testing of various field rations produced by our various allies.

I've heard the Canadians make some pretty good stuff, and the French field rations could probably be served at most mess halls, they're that good.


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