Army Medicine Carries Health Message to the Community

By Ronald Wolf, Army MedicineSeptember 3, 2015

Army Medicine Carries Health Message to the Community
Col. Deydre Teyhen carried the Performance Triad message to a joint luncheon of the West Springfield Rotary Club and a chapter of the West Point Society, on 20 Aug. in Springfield, Va. The Performance Triad -- sleep, activity, and nutrition -- is th... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL

The Army is the strength of our Nation, and the strength of the Army is our Soldiers, recently retired Chief of Staff Gen. Raymond Odierno said often.

Keeping our Soldiers healthy, fit and resilient, however, allowing them to be our Nation's strength is a challenge.

To meet this challenge, Army Medicine has developed The Performance Triad, within the Army's Ready and Resilient Campaign, to promote healthy choices in sleep, activity and nutrition. These three components, when properly managed, improve the health and performance of Soldiers.

This is the message the Col. Deydre Teyhen took to a joint luncheon of the West Springfield Rotary Club and a chapter of the West Point Society, on 20 Aug. in Springfield, Va. Teyhen is the Director, Health and Wellness, System for Health and Performance Triad for the Office of the Surgeon General.

A fit and healthy generation of young people is needed to sustain our troop levels, she said. Obesity and lack of fitness, unfortunately, have reduced the percentage of young people currently eligible for military service.

We have had problems resulting from poor nutrition habits previously as we tried to prepare our Army, Teyhen said. At the beginning of World War II, the problem was underweight and undernourished young people. One of the national initiatives as a result was the school lunch program.

Today, a big problem is obesity. Obese individuals entering military service are 47 percent more likely to be injured in the first 90 days of service, Teyhen said. Those same individuals use 49 percent more in health care resources. In general, our society is overweight and undernourished at the same time, she said.

The Performance Triad -- sleep, activity, and nutrition -- is the foundation to a healthy lifestyle. The Performance Triad is a key element of the Ready and Resilient Campaign of the Chief of Staff. The combined physical, emotional, social, spiritual and family fitness levels of the Army supported by the Performance Triad are a foundation of national readiness.

Teyhen discussed the elements of the Performance Triad with the audience. Teyhen stressed that sleep, activity and nutrition are not only important for good health, they are interrelated. Sleep is critical for optimal physical performance and cognitive decision making; physical activity drives the need for proper food choices and promotes restful sleep; and proper nutrition promotes quality sleep and top performance.

Sleep is the foundation for effective executive function, Teyhen said. During sleep, the brain "takes out the trash," and long-term memories form. Too little sleep contributes to plaque buildup, one of the factors in dementia such as Alzheimer's. Less than 5 hours of sleep for 5 days in a row reduces mental functioning to the equivalent of being legally drunk, she added. Sleep deprivation also makes you weaker and increases injury risk.

Nutrition is critical for good brain function as well. One in five calories consumed is metabolized by the brain, and proper fueling of the body supports proper brain function. Five or more fruits and vegetables per day contribute to a ready and resilient lifestyle, Teyhen said, the average Soldier, however, is consuming less than 1 fruit or vegetable per day.

We need to remind people to shop from the perimeter of the grocery store, Teyhen said, that's where fruits and vegetables and other healthy choices are mostly found. Highly processed food tends to fill the center aisles of the store.

Activity is a key to proper brain function as well. "You are never as smart as right after physical activity," Teyhen said. Exercise also helps us to "blow off steam" contributing to emotional resilience.

The Performance Triad is about making small changes that over time make big differences, allowing you to reach reasonable sleep, activity and nutrition goals, said Teyhen. It's important to start the conversation that encourages healthy choices, she said.

Teyhen showed the audience books that are being distributed to soldiers. The Performance Triad Challenge contains modules to help soldiers attain physical, cognitive and emotional strength. The Performance Triad Guide provides information on ways and practices to make healthy lifestyle choices.

Good Soldiers are fit Soldiers, and Army Medicine is helping them to recognize smart choices in sleep, activity and nutrition, making the strength of our Nation even stronger.

Related Links:

Army Medicine homepage

Performance Triad

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