Don't blame MREs for your gastrointestinal discomfort, Army scientists say

Consuming nothing but Meals Ready-to-Eat for three weeks may not be the most appetizing thing to do, but a study by Army scientists has found that it doesn’t harm gut health.

That may come as a surprise to anyone whose stomach has rumbled after eating the highly processed military rations for just one day, let alone 21, which is the maximum time the Army says MREs should be the sole source of subsistence for soldiers.

“It’s not MREs underlying a lot of anecdotal reports of gastrointestinal discomfort,” said Dr. J. Philip Karl, a scientist and research dietitian at the U.S. Army Research Institute of Environmental Medicine, and lead author on the study published in this month’s Journal of Nutritional Biochemistry.

Service members usually eat MREs when they’re training or on a mission, in harsh terrain, under stress and possibly overseas, where hygiene might not be at high standards, Karl said in a phone interview. They may also be dehydrated, he said.

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