The Growing Problem Of Addiction In The U.S. Military

Report: Military Hospitals Over Prescribing Painkillers, Leading Soldiers On A Path To Addition -- CBS News

(CBS News) A branch of the National Academy of Sciences reported today that doctors in military hospitals appear to be over prescribing pain pills and the result is often addiction.

Thirty-year-old Michael Long still has the bullet he took in his back during a tour in Iraq in 2005. He says removing it would have been too dangerous.

You can feel the bullet by just touching the bullet wound on Long's back. He said the injury is still "extremely painful."

In a military hospital, he got hooked on painkillers.

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More News On The Growing Problem Of Addiction In The U.S. Military

Study: Military drinking 'culture' now a 'crisis' -- AP
Study: Nearly Half of Military Binge Drinks; Painkiller Abuse Skyrockets -- US News and World Report
Study: Level of military substance abuse now a ‘public health crisis,’ Pentagon care outdated -- Washington Post/AP
Military Substance-Abuse Programs Critiqued by Panel -- Bloomberg Businessweek
Report: Military not adequately handling addiction in the ranks -- CBS
Military not doing enough to help soldiers with substance abuse, study finds -- Baltimore Sun
Military hospitals helping to addict our troops to pain medicines -- Examiner
The Downer Side of War -- Time

Alcohol Abuse Becoming One Of Many Problems For U.K. Vets

One In Seven UK Soldiers Blot Out The Horror Of War With Alcohol -- The Daily Mail

Thousands of British servicemen and women are abusing alcohol to block out the horrors of war in Iraq and Afghanistan.

An authoritative study has concluded that as many as 23,000 members of the Armed Forces - around one in seven - are drinking ' hazardous and harmful' levels of alcohol.

Servicemen and women who deploy to the front line are 22 per cent more like to suffer serious problems than other troops, according to the study.

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More News On the Growing Problem Of Alcoholism For U.K. Vets

Study finds alcohol abuse a problem in UK forces -- Reuters
UK troops in war zones 22% more likely to misuse alcohol than colleagues -- The Guardian
Alcohol ‘more of a problem for returning troops than stress disorder’ -- Times Online
Alcohol a problem for war veterans, study finds -- The Independent
Mental trauma 'not rife among UK troops' -- BBC
Medical journal warns of 'tidal wave' of mental trauma among servicemen -- The Telegraph
Drinking is embedded in army culture -- The Telegraph