By The Associated Press | July 7, 2004
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia -- Malaysia's armed forces are fighting the battle of the bulge.
Too many servicemen are overweight and death rates from diseases linked to obesity have soared compared to deaths on active duty, officers say, prompting a new campaign offering rewards for chubby soldiers who eat less and exercise more.
Obese soldiers are being offered incentives to lose 22 pounds in six months, a military spokesman said Wednesday. The rewards are yet to be determined, but it won't be extra meals, the spokesman said.
Armed forces chief Gen. Mohamad Zahidi Zainuddin said 20 percent of 1,488 soldiers who died in the past decade succumbed to chronic weight-related problems such as high blood pressure, hypertension and diabetes.
Adding to the military's unhealthy lifestyle, more than half of the roughly 100,000 servicemen and women smoke cigarettes, Zahidi said.
"This is a worrying trend, yet premature deaths from chronic diseases can be prevented with a healthy lifestyle," Zahidi was quoted as saying by the national news agency Bernama.