The military’s list of forbidden vices for deployed troops may target dietary supplements used by weight lifters to increase muscle mass.
It was remarked by Col. Erin Edgar, a physician who commanded the 28th Combat Support Hospital in Baghdad in 2006 and 2007 that 20 percent of 2,332 cases of soldiers who complain of palpitations or fainting spells were reported due to use of either performance enhancing supplements or prescription psychotropic drugs.
From NYTimes.com:
Ellen P. Embrey, the acting principal deputy assistant secretary of defense for health affairs, who sat on a panel with Colonel Edgar, said there were no plans to remove the supplements from base stores. But she said the Pentagon was reviewing the products as part of a larger study into optimizing troop performance.
The problem with supplements, Colonel Edgar said, is that they often contain substances that can make users susceptible to heat stroke. Many products include stimulants like caffeine or ephedrine that increase metabolism but also raise the heart rate and blood pressure — not necessarily a good thing for troops in combat or a hot climate, he said.
Colonel Edgar, who is assuming leadership of the Army’s 18th Medical Command, said “elite troops,” including Special Operations forces, seem to use the supplements more cautiously and therefore have fewer problems. He is most concerned, he said, about soldiers who take excessive amounts of the supplements, which they view as “magic bullets” that will make them muscle-bound overnight.
Though Colonel Edgar was not prepared to advocate a ban on the products, he did made a call to remove legal performance-enhancing supplements from stores on military bases.
If you would like to make a comment, please fill out the form below.
