Overstretched UK troops face mental problems-study

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Source: Reuters

Overstretched UK troops face mental problems-study
By Paul Majendie

LONDON, Aug 3 (Reuters) - Overstretched British troops face escalating mental problems the longer they stay on frontline duty in Iraq and Afghanistan, a study showed on Friday.

Those deployed for 13 months or more in a three-year period were more likely to have symptoms of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, the King's College London research revealed.

They also suffer greater psychological distress, marital problems and alcoholism once they come home, it said after studying the responses of more than 5,500 combat personnel.

"The principal conclusion was that if you go above a certain amount of deployments in a three-year period you are at greater risk of having mental health problems," said psychiatry professor Matthew Hotopf.

"There's a definite increase in things like post traumatic stress distress, anxiety and depression and alcohol problems," Hotopf told BBC radio on Friday after the findings were published in the British Medical Journal.

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