90,000 U.S. soldiers unfit for combat

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90,000 U.S. soldiers unfit for combat

By Michaela L. Duckett – November 4, 2011

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Good morning Qcity! Thank goodness it’s Friday. What are your weekend plans? Be sure to check out Toni’s picks in her weekly column “On the Town with Toni.”

It’s going to be a windy day in Charlotte. Today, the weatherman is calling for morning rain followed by afternoon showers with a high around 57° and lows in the upper 30s. Saturday’s forecast includes mainly sunny skies with a high around 56°. Sunday expect abundant sunshine and highs in the mid 50s and lows in the mid 30s.

Did you know that at any point in time, 1 in 20 hospital patients is at risk for contracting a Healthcare Associated Infection - which are bacterial, viral and fungal infections that patients get during the course of receiving medical care. Click here to find out how the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services is investing $34 million to help reduce such infections.

Here’s what’s brewing in the news:

Military officials concerned about number of unfit soldiers

With plans in place to reduce the U.S. Army by nearly 50,000 soldiers in coming years, military officials worry the reduction will dwindling the number of healthy GI’s, leaving a larger number of non-deployable soldiers within a smaller force, causing the Army to continue struggling to have sufficient manpower to adequately meet its mission requirements.

"The problem of a growing population of not-medically-ready soldiers has begun to erode the readiness of the Army," the service's surgeon general, Lt. Gen. Eric Schoomaker, recently said at a military conference in Washington, D.C.

Nearly 90,000 soldiers are either unfit for combat with health restrictions or are otherwise unavailable for combat, reports USA TODAY.

The Army says it can fill combat brigades heading to Afghanistan with healthy soldiers, but the growing list of ill, injured or wounded is making the job tougher, say military officials.
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Cheers! Drinking may reduce risk of dementia

Moderate drinking may reduce the risk of dementia in both men and women, young and old, according to a review of more than 100 studies. “These studies found no significant difference between moderate drinkers and non-drinkers in terms of their cognitive performance,” said Edward Neafsey of Loyola University in Chicago. “Moderate or light drinking was associated with a reduced risk of developing dementia.” Neafsey defined moderate drinking as no more than two drinks a day for a man or one drink a day for a woman. There was no difference in the effects alcohol had on men, versus women. The study in the journal Neuropsychiatric Disease and Treatment was supported by the National Institutes of Health.
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Washington considering cutting funds for yellow bus

Students in some parts of Washington state may be forced to find their own way to school, as lawmakers consider becoming the first in the nation to totally eliminate funding for school buses because of the recent recession. Gov. Chris Gregoire doesn't want to see her state stop spending money to get kids to school, but making cuts in student transportation could save the state $220 million and remains on her list of ways to potentially deal with the state’s $2 billion budget shortfall. The idea is one of many that Gregoire has floated in advance of a special legislative session later this month. (Read more)