A brief history of drug-fuelled combatants

• I don’t know whether he thought that it might reduce pain or improve performance, but the idea of taking drugs before “going into battle” goes back to the beginning of recorded history.
• Indeed, we find frequent mentions of mead drinking by the warriors in Edinburgh in the seventh-century epic poem The Goddodin.
• These ancient warriors probably used alcohol to reduce anxiety and blunt the horrors they would face on the battlefield.

• Pervitin (methamphetamine) was given almost freely to all arms of the German war machine.
• The frontline Nazis called them Panzerschokolade (tank chocolate), due to the feelings of incredible strength and invincibility that the pills gave them.

Behavioural effects

The types of drugs taken by warriors can be lumped into three broad categories: depressants, hallucinogens and stimulants. Alcohol is a depressant that calms the nerves by reducing brain activity. Psychedelic mushrooms such as Amanita muscaria contain a variety of psychoactive substances. Hyoscyamus niger also has a variety of active compounds that cause hallucinations and, importantly, aggressive and combative behaviour.

• The word “groggy” meaning dazed and unsteady came from British navy sailors exhibiting this behaviour after their daily ration of rum and water (grog).
• The stimulants, but especially methamphetamine, would also lead to significant weight loss even after only a few days of use.
• Long-term use, as we saw with the Nazis, would probably lead to emaciated soldiers.

Smart drugs

• We have seen that soldiers take drugs before battles to calm nerves, deal with the horrors, reduce pain, tolerate lack of food and sleep and improve alertness.
• The stimulants include drugs such as amphetamine salt mixtures, methylphenidate and modafinil, while nootropics include piracetam, caffeine, cobalamin (vitamin B12), guarana, pyridoxine (vitamin B6) and vinpocetine.
• The integration of humans, technology and machines is thought to be the future of warfare and drugs that facilitate this are undoubtedly being researched by the military.

Post-traumatic stress disorder

• There is a long history of soldiers taking alcohol and other drugs to deal with the horrors of what they have seen, or the disappointment of life after leaving the army.
• These veterans are taking MDMA and psilocybin on doctors’ orders as part of their treatment for PTSD.
• Ketamine is useful for treating depression and LSD is also being tested for various psychiatric disorders.

Colin Davidson has previously received funding from the US National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA). He is a consultant with the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (UK).