Abstract
American troops serving in Vietnam turned to drugs and alcohol to deal with the atrocities of war. Initially, the drug of choice in the war was marijuana. However, when the problem was discovered, the military took actions to eliminate marijuana use. This provided an avenue for heroin to become the drug of choice. The production of heroin in Vietnam, the easy accessibility to the drug and the relatively low cost of the drug attracted American troops. It did not take long for heroin addiction to become significant among the troops. Heroin use began to deteriorate the health, welfare, discipline and combat readiness of the soldiers in Vietnam. Attempts to eliminate the heroin problem were not successful, until government officials intervened. President Nixon created programs to assist the addicted soldiers. Operation Golden Flow was established in Vietnam to detox the soldiers. This program proved successful after the soldiers returned to America, however, during the war the impact of the drug and its use is deplorable.
INTRODUCTION
War has a profound effect on its participants. The war in Vietnam cannot be understood in terms of the world wars fought prior nor the wars that followed. The soldiers returning home from war are typically honored and appreciated, yet the soldiers returning from Vietnam were unappreciated, disrespected and abhorred. Adjustment to life outside the military was already one difficulty these men and women had to face, as was the feeling of resentment when they returned home, but the most significant problem many returning soldiers faced was the addiction to heroin that they acquired in Vietnam. One out of five returning Army Vietnam soldiers came home either physically or psychological dependent on heroin . Heroin use in Vietnam became a real American problem.
THE VIETNAM WAR
The Vietnam War was a conflict between North and South Vietnam. North Vietnam wanted to unify Vietnam as one communist regime. South Vietnam resisted and received support from the West. China and the Soviet Union backed North Vietnam while the United States assisted the South. The conflict began in 1954, and by 1969 nearly a half a million American troops fought in Vietnam.
Americans initially supported United States involvement in the war due to fear of the spread of communism. However, as the casualties and cost of the war increased, support began to wane. The draft instituted during the war also created intense resentment in Americans. The Vietnam War turned out to be a thorn in the side of America. There was no victory in the Vietnam War. Americans who served in Vietnam continue to suffer significantly from post-traumatic stress disorder, alcoholism and drug addiction.
DRUG USE IN THE WAR
Illicit drugs enticed American soldiers in Vietnam. Soldiers were reportedly first interested in marijuana and its use was exponential. However, when Army officials became aware the marijuana problem, they took immediate action to rid the troops of the drug. As an alternative, the soldiers turned heroin. Heroin became the drug of choice because its use could not be immediately noticeable as it does not create a smell like smoking marijuana. Heroin also reportedly produced a better euphoric high than marijuana as it seemed to speed up time.
Pure heroin was accessible and inexpensive, thus allowing for military personnel to become devoted users of the drug. The recreational use of heroin consisted of mixing heroin with tobacco and smoking it like a cigarette. This allowed soldiers to consume the drug at any time without being caught as it did not have an odor. Although heroin users also snorted and injected the drug, smoking was the most common method of use.
Heroin was easily obtained in Vietnam and it cost very little. In Southeast Asia, during the Vietnam War, heroin laboratories were numbered in the thousands due to the massive production of opium. Once the drug began to be produced in large quantities, addiction by American soldiers grew rapidly. The high produced by heroin soothed the anxiety, loneliness and shock. The high incidence of drug use in the Vietnam War can be attributed to involuntary enlistment through the draft, low morale among soldiers and “the lack of a clear mission”. Many soldiers had no desire to be in the war.
Heroin use created many problems in the Vietnam War. Heroin use was closely associated with addiction and posed the threat of a medical epidemic. There were so many heroin users in Vietnam that placing them in hospitals for treatment would detract medical care from other patients. Vietnam hospitals had no sufficient program to monitor or test for patients with withdrawal symptoms. Inpatient program that were available had not protocol to keep heroin out. Soldiers defended their use of the drug as being justified under the circumstances. Soldiers were so opposed to the war that if found to be heroin user, soldiers would automatically ask for evacuation from the area.
In the beginning of 1970, American troops in Vietnam embraced the heroin that was being rapidly produced. Heroin overdose deaths, heroin medical problems and heroin-related crimes rose as quickly. Army units seemed to be effected more substantially by the heroin problem. Commanders were baffled on how to respond as treatment attempts failed. Just two years later, the only resolution that the Army could come up with was to quarantine soldiers for detox and observation, then returned to America for treatment. Eventually, one out of ten solders were being sent home . Heroin use began to deteriorate the health, welfare, discipline and combat readiness of the soldiers in Vietnam.
ADDICTION
The military attempted to respond to the heroin problem by coordinating drug programs to rehabilitate users. Drug abuse talks by commanders began, several divisions attempted to provide soldiers with the knowledge of the dangers of drug abuse, amnesty programs were created, centers for detox and counseling were established and law enforcement increased efforts at enforcement of laws.
Congressman Robert Steele and Congressman Morgan Murphy made an official visit in 1971 to Vietnam. On their trip, they discovered that 15 percent the soldiers in Vietnam were addicted to heroin. This was astonishing news to government officials and American citizens as well. A New York Times front page headline entitled “G.I. Heroin Addiction Epidemic in Vietnam,” gave stark attention to the problem of heroin. The media even provided shocking images in its coverage of the drug.
Many Americans worried about what would happen when American soldiers who were addicted to $5-a-day heroin in Vietnam returned home to a daily habit that would cost $100 or more. President Nixon and the American public worried that an epidemic of heroin addiction and subsequent crime would invade America with the returning addicted soldiers. Nixon labeled the drug addiction problem as “public enemy number one.” The first federal methadone treatment program was also created by Nixon.
It was also at this time that scientists began to understand heroin as a drug. Researchers found that the human brain produces receptors for opioids like heroin thus causing a user to be experience a euphoria that is natural but at an exemplified degree. Thus, heroin, as a fake endorphin, causes human to feel extremely good and become quickly addicted to the feeling. These studies led scientists to conclude that heroin is the most dangerous and addictive drug in the world with relapse inevitable.
GOVERNMENT RESPONSE TO ADDICTION
Upon hearing the Congressman’s report, President Nixon created the Special Action Office of Drug Abuse Prevention. Nixon’s program focused on prevention as well as rehabilitation and also consisted of a program where the soldiers would be reviewed regularly upon return to the United States. Nixon hired psychiatrist Lee Robins to assist the follow-up study of the soldiers. There was a high rate of addiction found among soldiers serving in Vietnam, up to 20%. Before returning home from Vietnam every soldier was tested for heroin under the Golden Flow program. Once the detoxed soldiers returned to the United States, a follow-up continued where Robins kept regular data on each soldier. To the surprise of Robins, the rate of relapse was amazingly low for the returning soldiers, with 95% remaining clean from heroin after one year. This was contrary to all beliefs held about heroin and addiction at the time.
Operation Golden Flow was created in response to the findings that Vietnam soldiers were addicted to heroin. Operation Golden Flow required soldiers who tested positive for heroin in Vietnam to remain in Vietnam until detoxed. . This was Nixon’s war on drugs.
The Special Action for Drug Abuse Prevention’s Date Eligible for Return from Overseas program identified at least 10% of returning soldiers with positive drug tests. This program appeared to be effective as there were very few relapses by the soldiers. Those who did not relapse on heroin upon return to the United States had stable families at home.
CONCLUSION
American troops serving in Vietnam turned to drugs and alcohol to deal with the atrocities of war. Initially, the drug of choice in the war was marijuana. However, when the problem was discovered, the military took actions to eliminate marijuana use. This allowed heroin to become the drug of choice. The production of heroin in Vietnam, the easy accessibility to the drug and the relatively low cost of the drug attracted American troops. It did not take long for heroin addiction to become significant among the troops. Heroin use began to deteriorate the health, welfare, discipline and combat readiness of the soldiers in Vietnam.
Attempts to eliminate the heroin problem were not successful, until government officials intervened. President Nixon created programs to assist the addicted soldiers. Operation Golden Flow was established in Vietnam to detox the soldiers. This program proved successful after the soldiers returned to America, however, during the war the impact of the drug and its use is deplorable.
REFERENCES
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Gupta, S. (2015, December 22). Vietnam, heroin, and the lesson of disrupting any addiction. Retrieved from CNN: http://www.cnn.com/2015/12/21/health/vietnam-heroin-disrupting-addiction/
Robins, L. N., Davis, D. H., & Goodwin, D. W. (1973). Drug Use by U.S. Army Enlisted Men in Vietnam: A Follow-up on Their Return Home. American Journal of Epidemiology, 99(4), 235-249.
Ronk, L. (2014, January 20). The War WIthin: Portraits of Vietnam Veterans Fighting Heroin Addiction. Retrieved from Time: http://time.com/3878718/vietnam-veterans-heroin-addiction-treatment-photos/
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