Migraines affect our national security

Migraines have specific and profound consequences for military personnel; migraines can impair their ability to function and may result in soldiers being non-deployable or discharged from military service.

Over the past decade, migraines and other headaches have become a significant problem for the U.S. armed forces. A 2008 Defense Department report states that the diagnosis of migraine has increased across all branches of the military between 2001 and 2007.

Another, more recent study, found that among nearly 1,000 soldiers evacuated from Iraq and Afghanistan because of some form of headache between 2004 and 2009, two-thirds did not return to duty. “Headaches represent a significant cause of unit attrition in personnel deployed in military operations,” the study concluded.

Methods for diagnosing migraine headaches have been refined. These methods have been instrumental in establishing exactly what the effects of military conflicts have upon our soldiers. After tours of duty, previously symptom-free service men and women are much more likely to experience migraine. A 2009 study of more than 1.2 million U.S. participants in Iraqi and Afghan military actions found the number who received a diagnosis of migraine increased 40 percent after a tour of duty.

This may be due to the fact that military personnel are likely to encounter numerous physiological and psychological factors that are known to precipitate migraine attacks and exacerbate migraine disorder. These factors include disrupted sleep and meal patterns, fatigue, psychological stress, emotional strain, heat, noise and other environmental exposures.

Post-deployment, post-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety and depression also continue to be issues for some. These conditions are also frequently linked to migraine symptoms. Together, these problems can dramatically reduce our veterans’ quality of life.

According to Lt. Col. Jay Erickson, a physician at the Madigan Army Medical Center in Tacoma, Washington, one in three service members with migraine is moderately or severely disabled by the condition post-deployment, as determined by the widely used Migraine Disability Assessment test.

If one drills down further and looks into the past, one can only wonder how many of the almost 30 million military veterans from conflicts going back to WWII, Korea, Vietnam and Desert Storm are still suffering from migraine.

PuraMed BioScience, Inc., has created a low-cost, non-prescription medication that may help many of these veterans stop the pain of migraine. All natural LipiGesic M has been clinically tested and found to be effective as a first-line treatment for migraine.

If you know someone suffering the effects of migraines, ask them if they have tried LipiGesic M. It works.

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