Found this neat infograph via a tweet yesterday.. Couldn’t go without sharing it here.

Note: One of the subtle yet unexplored issue is the impact of America’s bulging waistlines on our national security.. It is not about our Armed forces struggling to find men and women who are physically fit.  If you look at it from a macro level, the obesity issue has some serious implications for our national security. You may ask why? Because we import way too much of our oil from some of the very troubled parts of the world to haul our our people around the streets and highways of this nation.   According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA), In 2011, the United States consumed about 134 billion gallons1 (or 3.19 billion  barrels2) of gasoline, a daily average of about 367.08 million gallons (8.74 million barrels). This was about 6% less than the record high of about 142.38 billion gallons (or 3.39 billion barrels) consumed in 2007.  Interestingly,  the U.S. imported approximately 11.4 million barrels per day of petroleum in 2011 from about 80 countries (~45% net consumption is from imported oil).  So, the heavier we become as a nation, the more fuel we will consume everyday. The more we import, more money goes to these troubled countries and eventually resulting in conflicts that inflict a greater loss of life.  Some of these conflicts zones even have our personnel directly engaged in combat and  now you see where this is going? Glad the current administration is taking steps to minimize our oil consumption with such measures as raising fuel economy standards but as a nation we still have a long way to go before we reach a secure energy future. And to get there every ounce matters.

Related articles

• A McClatchy special report: Is the era of oil nearing its end?
• America Needs Less Foreign Oil… For the Wrong Reasons
• Group: America’s obesity problem is hurting national security