Use of Alternative Health Practices and New-onset Posttraumatic Stress Disorder in a Large Prospective Cohort Study

Background: Alternative health practices (AHP) have become prevalent in military populations and have been shown to improve mental health conditions among veterans. Limited information exists on whether such practices assist in reducing risk for new-onset posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), a well-recognized morbidity associated with the current conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Methods: Participants are from the Millennium Cohort Study, a 21-year longitudinal study launched in 2001. AHP use was defined as any of the following practices: herbal therapy, chiropractic care, acupuncture, or megavitamin use. Using logistic regression, we investigated the relationship between baseline self-report AHP use and new-onset PTSD among deployed personnel, particularly those with combat experience, while adjusting for baseline demographic, military, occupational, and behavioral characteristics.

Results: After exclusions, 11,246 deployed individuals were available for analyses. AHP users were more likely to be male, older, married, non-Hispanic white, enlisted, nonsmokers, and report no history of alcohol dependence. Approximately 50% reported combat exposures (n = 5,597), of which 20% used AHP. Prevalence of new-onset PTSD was 4% (n = 490). Self-reported combat exposures (OR: 4.35, 95% CI 3.33-5.69) and AHP use (OR: 1.38, 95% CI 1.11-1.72) were significantly associated with elevated odds of new-onset PTSD, after adjusting for confounders.

Discussion: Although AHP use was positively associated with new-onset PTSD, it is possible that those reporting baseline use of AHPs may have already possessed subclinical mental health symptoms fostering the development of new-onset PTSD postdeployment. Ongoing prospective analyses may provide additional insight into the true relationship between AHP use and new-onset PTSD