That's the question raised by Richard Friedman in an article entitled "Why Are We Drugging Our Soldiers?" in today's NY Times. He acknowledges that it can't be proven that the answer is yes, but he certainly raises some questions.
The stimulants under discussion are medicines such as Ritalin and Adderall. Their use by our military has increased dramatically in the past several years. In 2001 we spent $7,500,000 on these drugs, in 2010 $39,000,000. In 2007 3,000 prescriptions were written annually for our soldiers; that number has grown to 32,000.
Compare this growth to that of PTSD cases. In 2002 studies show that .2% of those who served in Iraq and Afghanistan were diagnosed as having PTSD. The number in 2008? 22%.
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