Use of Possibility of Physical Education and Sport in Order to Form Healthy Draft Base in Ukraine: Historical Review

Abstract

The article analyses the state of physical and mental health of young people as future draftees, as well as the demographic situation in the world and Ukraine. The article considers influence of reducing number of young people doing sports, the exclusion of physical culture from the list of normative disciplines in higher educational institutions on the quality of draft base. It is shown that the rapid aging of Ukraine population is accompanied by of smoking, alcohol and drug abuse among youth. The data confirming the leadership of Ukraine in the number of adolescents and young people regularly consuming alcohol (including beer and low alcohol drinks) are given. The problems of alcoholism, smoking and drug abuse among the civilian youth (including students) and in the army are considered in historical aspect. The conducted analysis of literature sources shows that rather successful attempts to improve the health situation of draftees, upper secondary schools and students were made in the Russian Empire from the beginning of the XIX century till 1917. Recommendations on the use of the accumulated experience in development and implementation of effective physical games at the curricula of the civil and military schools to improve the current draftees’ quality are formulated. The article shows the necessity of implementation of martial arts in the training process of cadets of higher military educational establishments and students of military colleges.