Readers of Tom Philpott's Military Update column sound off

Active Duty Retirees Explain Their Higher Death Rates

Spend some time with active duty Marines and you'll know why those of us who are retired know instinctively why we likely will have shorter lives than reserve retirees. We don't need studies.

Until recently, it had been decades since reserve and National Guard personnel had significant active duty time and combat. For those who have served on extended active duty in high-stress environments, they likely will see some increase in mortality rate.

I spent a career in Marine aviation, often working 12 to 15 hour days, six or seven days a week, in daily contact with hazardous chemicals and huge physical stresses. There was repeated manual lifting of bombs and other heavy items, little sleep, high stress on the flight deck or flight line. Imagine what infantry go through. The list would be almost endless.

Poor diet, little sleep, physical and mental stress, loss of family for long periods, exposure to hazardous materials, poor medical care, dangerous work and life habits – those were a way of life for my generation. The mission always comes first, before family, before self. There is no excuse for going to the doctor unless you're dead, and then you better have a chit. Physical ailments often go untreated or are self-treated.

Shocked? Wake up! Get out from behind that desk, put on a pack and see the world Marine-style for a few months. Do the work, be part of the mission, feel the stress, and then go back and look at the numbers.

You can't sit behind a desk in an air conditioned office, without fear of someone shooting at you or of getting blown off the deck or being run over by equipment for 20 or 30 years, and not be measurably better off.

To me, the surprise expressed by the actuary board in the article is like watching an adult repeatedly run into a wall and wonder why his head hurts.

DALE SWANSON
USMC-Ret.
San Diego, Calif.

Back in my time, starting in the 1940's, malingering was about the worst sin a GI could do. I missed many a needed sick call because, like my brethren, I did not want to be branded as a malingerer.

When I retired my medical record had fewer than a dozen pages in it. You should see my medical record now. I am making up for all those years of denying myself treatment.

ELWIN C. HALL
Chief Warrant Officer (W-4), USAF-Ret.
Biloxi, Miss.

Death might come sooner to active duty retirees because of culture shock. "Lifers" leave a closed society where their places are understood. You have a group of a dozen, or a hundred dozen, who know your name and expect you to know them.

When lifers retire they are no longer "home" but rather in a society that doesn't know them and they have no close ties.

But I also suspect this separation is growing weaker and smaller all the time, so the difference in life expectancy may fade away.

ROBERT D. DOLEMAN
Fort Sill, Okla.

In September 1982, I was a couple of weeks into my senior year at Tabb High School. My mother and father, an active duty master sergeant, were at the Base Exchange at Langley Air Force Base, Va.

While perusing clothes, my mom or dad dropped a pen. My father reached down to get it. He tried and tried but could not pick the pen up, and he was a little woozy. As a precaution my mother brought him over to the base hospital. They put the blood pressure cuff on his left arm and could not get any pressure or pulse. His right side was high but okay.

Instead of investigating this further, as is dictated in most health manuals, they scheduled him for testing the following week. He had a massive stroke the next day at age 43. He recovered and lived eight more years. He died four days before the birth of his first grandchild.

While I don't excuse the fact that he had high blood pressure and didn't live a healthy lifestyle, I still think he was robbed of some quality years with his family.

Thanks for raising this subject up for evaluation.

DENNIS F. VANCAMP
Hampton, Va.

Maybe reservists who worked full time jobs, in addition to being reservists, did not quit work after military retirement. Because they stayed active, their lifespan could be longer.

After 30 years active and reserve, I retired in 1961 from the reserves but I have never stopped working. Retirement for some is a short death sentence.

E. W. TAYLOR
Via e-mail

With my recent experience 18+ years of active duty, I might have a little more "gouge" on this than the empirical data cited.

The one common factor among active duty members across services is progression through the ranks. If you re-look at your demographics you might see the officer corps has an even higher mortality rate. The reserves and Guard are more relaxed regarding the whole rank thing, and with relaxation comes less stress.

I believe combat duty plays a part but it is the 'raison d'etre' for a lot of us as warriors. Promotion, or sometimes not attaining it, plays a larger part in a person's self worth. It is the seeking of self validation that produces increased stressors.

J. C.
Via e-mail

Career officers in retirement not only outlive enlisted retirees but also civilian peers, by several years. This disparity goes back generations. Higher incomes, more education and better access to health care often are cited to explain the longevity of retired officers. – Tom Philpott

Interesting, indeed, is the ostensibly statistical significance between active duty and reserve retiree mortality rates.

What is needed is follow-up analysis of the identified groups. The real difference may be revealed when studies control for functions such as heart rate, blood pressure, body mass index and behavioral risk factors such as smoking, diet and exercise.

Also, differences in marital status, social support networks and religious belief must be included.

THOMAS J. SYRACUSE
Lieutenant Colonel, AUS

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