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MOPs & MOEs
@mops_n_moes

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We're going to go through a few of these, but since the correlation is particularly strong I figured I would start with alcohol. As with anything, the precise strength of the correlation varies between studies. But the fundamental conclusion is clear: excessive drinking is strongly associated with high suicide risk. This is particularly concerning given that the highest levels of alcohol abuse are among male service members under the age of 25, who are already the highest risk category overall. Where a lot of this gets complicated is around the ways we advertise alcohol to service members on our installations. It makes up 9% of AAFES' total sales, the profits from which are reinvested in the military's non-appropriated fund activities. Crucially, these funds support MWR programs, perhaps most notably childcare centers. This makes commanders hesitant to take any action that could reduce these funds. Perhaps we need to look at realigning financial incentives in a way that doesn't make military childcare dependent on troops drinking enough and eating enough junk food. Going back over two decades, DoD leaders recommended adjusting alcohol prices on base to match prices off base, and reducing the advertising and glamorizing of alcohol. They based this recommendation on the costs from treating alcohol related injuries and illnesses. These costs are still higher when you factor in lost productivity and damages caused off the installation. At the request of the MWR leadership, this was clearly not implemented. Despite small initiatives demonstrating successes, alcohol remains a core part of the military's culture, and unfortunately a coping mechanism for many service members dealing with other stresses. #military #suicide #mentalhealth #alcohol #drinking #data #research #army #navy #marines #airforce #spaceforce #morale #stress