An astonishing 173 potential recruits have been turned away from the British Army because of their dodgy gnashers or gum disease. They clearly can’t handle the tooth
Scores of wannabe soldiers have been rejected by the British Army because of their bad teeth. In the past four years, 173 would-be recruits were turned away due to gum disease or rotting gnashers.
Figures from the Ministry of Defence show they were among 47,000 rejected on medical grounds. The statistics published in June also show some 26,000 troops required treatment for tooth decay and gum disease.
A recent study found that for every 1,000 troops deployed on operations, up to 150 needed dental treatment at some point. In Afghanistan, helicopters flew to remote bases so that soldiers could be evacuated to Camp Bastion for urgent dental work.
The British Dental Association said more troops were incapacitated with dental trouble in Afghanistan and Iraq than through combat. Research shows Army recruits have twice as many dental issues as the rest of society, partly as many are from poor backgrounds.
The figures, covering 2020 to 2024, show almost half of all recruits who were rejected on medical grounds had psychiatric problems. Potential troops have also been rejected for heart problems, reproductive issues and hay fever.
Around 1,800 were turned down due to skin conditions such as acne. The Army has 71,000 troops – down from 100,000 at the turn of the century – with Defence Secretary John Healey admitting it will take “some time to reverse the decline”.
Richard Holroyd, from recruitment firm Capita, has told MPs the medical requirements are so strict the England rugby team would be refused entry.
He said Capita had targeted 9,813 recruits for 2023/24, but has attracted only 5,000 since April last year.
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