Nearly half the young people taking a physical examination to join the People's Liberation Army fail due to 'excessive drinking and entertainment' and other unhealthy lifestyle choices, according to Xinhua.
Citing a study compiled from military health checkup stations, the report blamed everything from poor eyesight to mental problems for the recruits being found unfit for duty. It singled out carousing as a particular problem.
'Excessive drinking and entertainment can cause [an] unbearable burden for the kidneys and possibly make them suffer from albuminuria eventually,' unnamed experts were quoted as saying. Albuminuria is an abnormal amount of protein in the urine, and can be a sign of kidney disease.
The report, which did not give a time period for the study, detailed the case of a man in Jiangsu whose 'dream of joining the army was shattered by constant drinking and staying up all night in the karaoke lounge'.
