ABSTRACT
Substance abuse-heavy alcohol use, illicit drug use, and cigarette smokinghas substantial negative effects on the health, productivity, and welfare of military personnel. It not only detracts from the well-being of both military personnel and civilians, but it may also decrease the readiness of military personnel to perform their mission. Further, because of the special conditions of military life, such as living away from family and friends or working in high-risk environments, substance use rates may be higher among military personnel than among civilians and the negative effects associated with use may be correspondingly higher. Accordingly, the Department of Defense (DoD) set forth a series of policy directives to decrease the impact of substance abuse on military personnel. Recent DoD policies largely are based on preventing problems from occurring rather than treating problems after they occur. The DoD recognizes that prevention is the most effective policy, and preventive efforts are initiated at recruitment and continue throughout military service.
