Military Operations in the Cold: Effects on Anaerobic-Muscular Performance and Select Blood Indices

Many reports have established the existence of negative physiological and psychological effects developing in humans due to prolonged cold weather exposure. Dehydration, soft tissue injuries, increased energy expenditure, elevated fatigue, depression, and impaired cognition are a few of the problems associated with exposure to this environment. Furthermore, it is well established that during extended military field maneuvers extreme physical demands are placed on personnel. The combined effects of an adverse environment and high physical workloads can significantly degrade human performance. This latter issue, decrement of human performance, is a key concern of military biomedical researchers because of the potential impact to the success of military operations. (js)