Military Veterans Likely Candidates for CAM Therapies

Military Veterans Likely Candidates for CAM Therapies

TUCSON, Ariz.--Conventional medical care practitioners should be aware of unique experiences military veterans have with complementary and alternative medicine (CAM), according to a paper published in the Aug. 12 issue of the Archives of Internal Medicine (162:1697-704, 2002) (http://archinte.ama-assn.org). Researchers from the University of Arizona surveyed 508 military veterans from the Southern Arizona Veterans Administration Health Care System via a telephone interview. Of the subjects, nearly half (49.6 percent) reported CAM use and were more likely to be non-Hispanic white, earn more than $50,000 per year and have more than 12 years of education. High levels of daily stress, perceived negative impact of military life on physical or mental health, and physician-diagnosed chronic illness were statistically associated with CAM use. Researchers concluded ethnicity, education, income and overseas military experiences were significant predictors of CAM use by this group of veterans.

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