The U.S. military's new medical frontline

Photographs: istockphoto.com/EchoArt (helmet); istockphoto.com/AlexStar (stones)

Is the U.S. military looking for enlightenment? Meditation, yoga, acupuncture and even pet ownership are all part of a research program funded by the Department of Defense to find new tactics for combating post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), other stress-related conditions and traumatic brain injury. "We come to it with an open mind," says Lt. Col. Jay Stone, one of the officers in charge of funding the research. "We want to know about all the possible treatments out there."

The Defense Centers of Excellence for Psychological Health and Traumatic Brain Injury launched the initiative, spending nearly $5 million last year—more than 10 percent of its research budget—investigating alternative and complementary medical techniques. The Defense Department estimates that 42,600 service members have been diagnosed with PTSD and 36,000 with traumatic brain injury since 2001.

The current recommended treatments for PTSD include cognitive behavioral therapy and drugs for anxiety and depression, but "these don’t work for everybody," says Stone. "We’re always looking for alternative treatments. Most alternative treatments have not been rigorously studied and we want to fill that gap and fund research that will scientifically and rigorously answer the question, Is there proof that these methods can help?"

If the research proves conclusive when it’s completed sometime next year, some of these alternative therapies might be included in the Defense Department’s clinical practice guidelines. That would mean military doctors could start prescribing them. The funded research includes yoga, mindfulness and self-compassion meditation, acupuncture for PTSD and a separate study for insomnia, virtual reality therapy and pet ownership.