NUMBER OF ENLISTED PERSONNEL LEAVING ARMED SERVICES ON THE RISE

Drug use, weight problems and parenthood have been taking their toll
on the military in the past three years, since the war on terror
began, according to newly released Pentagon data.

Documents released to The Associated Press under the Freedom of
Information Act indicate the number of enlisted personnel leaving the
military each year has increased from 8.7 percent in 2002 to 10.5
percent last year.

Enlisted losses - including people whose enlistments had expired -
increased from 118,206 in 2002 to more than 137,465 last year, while
officer losses have increased from 5,619 in 2002 to more than 7,500 last year.

The subset of those leaving before their term was up, for reasons
ranging from disability to drug abuse, increased from 58,214 in 2002
to 60,406 last year among enlisted personnel and from 1,011 in 2002
to 1,280 for officers.

"Service members leave the military for a variety of reasons," said
Pentagon spokeswoman Lt. Col. Ellen Krenke. "This is an all-volunteer
military, which is dedicated to defending its country. We appreciate
their service and respect their reasons for leaving the service."

Krenke said the military met and in some cases exceeded its retention
goals this year.

None of the 1.4 million soldiers, sailors and Marines on active duty
today is allowed to simply quit the military, but they can be kicked
out, or in certain cases receive special discharges.

The reasons for leaving the service differ in each branch, though
general misconduct - a term which can mean anything from petty theft
to brawling with colleagues - has consistently been the most common
explanation.

Pentagon data going back 10 years shows that service losses last year
are still below overall levels in the mid-90s, when the Defense
Department struggled with both retention and recruiting.

But in recent years, some categories reached 10-year highs. Pregnancy
and parenthood, for example, have steadily increased as a reason for
personnel losses, especially in the Army, where last year 4,238
soldiers were discharged from the Army for pregnancy and parenthood,
up from 2,862 in 2002 and 2,565 in 1996. This reflects what military
officials say is a baby boom, especially at bases with high deployments.

Pregnancy used to mean an automatic discharge; these days, it's an
option but not a requirement. Even so, increased numbers of service
members are asking to get out because they have children.

"These days military parents are finding it very complicated to
serve, because a lot of people are being deployed, many are being
deployed multiple times, and these deployments have proved to be
unpredictable in length and frequency," said Shelley M. MacDermid,
director of the Military Family Research Institute at Purdue
University in West Lafayette, Indiana.

MacDermid said she has even heard of instances where soldiers "use
pregnancy as a way to get out of a situation they don't like."

Drug use is also an increasing reason soldiers are being discharged
from the Army, up 40 percent since 2002; last year 1986 soldiers were
kicked out of the Army for using for using marijuana, cocaine,
ecstasy and other illegal drugs. By contrast, soldiers thrown out for
alcohol dropped from 251 in 2002 to 164 last year.

Rod Powers, a retired Air Force sergeant who writes advice an advice
column on the Web about military service and has written books on the
subject, said the drug use discharges probably reflect more
sophisticated drug testing policies in all military branches.

"The military is getting smarter about drug testing, with better
science and more random tests," he said. "I hear from a lot of young
recruits thinking they can beat a urinalysis, but I tell them it's
not so easy."

Powers said the reduction in alcohol-related discharges is likely
because most troops are not allowed to drink while they are deployed
because they are posted in Muslim countries, and with longer and more
frequent deployments there are simply fewer opportunities to imbibe.

Another issue that is prompting increased discharges is a failure to
meet weight standards. The Army, which has the most stringent weight
standards of all the military branches, kicked out more than 3,285
soldiers last year because they were too heavy.

Beth Asch, who tracks armed forces staffing at the RAND Corp., a
nonpartisan think tank, said the Army's weight problems may have been
there all along.

"The big attrition due to weight is the Army trying to make its
recruiting mission by waiving the weight standards," she said. "The
problem with doing that is those people tend to drop out."

The Marines and Air Force, by contrast, dropped standard weight
tables and have used body fat measurements instead. They have seen
sharp declines in the numbers of troops being released due to weight problems.

The high profile and usually controversial discharges - like
conscientious objection and homosexuality - represent a small
fraction of the total losses.

Only about 40 uniformed personnel received honorable discharges as
conscientious objectors last year. The Pentagon did not release 2005
numbers of those released for "homosexual conduct," but in 2004 just
653 people were discharged under the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy.
That was down from a 10-year high in 2001 of 1,273.

Powers said he has heard from service members that commanders "aren't
buying it when someone says they're a homosexual" and should be
released from their obligation, he said.

Service members released because of pregnancy or because they are
disabled almost always receive honorable discharges, but those who
are kicked out for drug use or weight problems often end up with the
black mark of a dishonorable or less than honorable discharge on their record.

Chris Lopez, a San Diego-based recruiter who helps place retiring
military personnel in civilian jobs for the Lucas Group firm, said a
negative discharge "is going to make it very difficult for some
people to find work."

But he said honorable discharges for things prompted by disability or
dependency do not hinder career placement.