A recent report from the U.S. Army's fifth Mental Health Advisory Team revealed that many soldiers are turning to antidepressant drugs to help them cope through wartime deployments.

Time magazine recently covered this story, stating that this recent survey of troops led to the discovery that 17 percent of combat troops stationed in Afghanistan and 12 percent of those stationed in Iraq are taking prescription drugs to help deal with issues related to nerves, depression, and sleep deprivation.

According to Military.com, the Army estimates that authorized drug use splits about evenly into two groups: troops taking antidepressants -- such as Prozac and Zoloft -- and those taking prescription sleeping pills. The percentage soldiers on antidepressants is an equal representation of the percentage of the general civilian population who also use these drugs, says the report.

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Curious to know how celebrities squeeze fitness into their daily lives? Want to know the secrets of the stars? Bi-weekly our That's Fit fitness expert Fitz sits down with the celebs we want to know more about, and digs out their great and not-so-great methods to staying healthy

My guests this week are a bit dear to my heart, as they share the same passion for fighting as I do. Doug Anderson, a highly decorated Iraqi war veteran from New Jersey traveled across the world with Jimmy Smith, a young Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) fighter. Their journey had them test their skills against locals and various fighting styles, often styles they had never seen before. Always exciting, often painful, and always real....the Discovery Channel's Fight Quest stars went on an adventure of a lifetime and returned home with bruises and scars to show for it.

Fitz: Most folks dread the thought of even verbal confrontation. You guys volunteered to go fight a bunch of unknowns from around the world, many of which were yielding weapons you didn't know how to use! What scares you?

Doug: I was shot at in Iraq and had bombs explode 100 yards from me while there. None of that stuff ever scared me. But fighting like we did on this show was different. In Iraq I was part of a team; on Fight Quest I was alone. If I failed.....the onus was on me. I was always most nervous right before each fight, but I'd lose those nerves as soon as I got hit. It made me want to go running face-first into the other guys fist. Just to get it over with!

Jimmy: What scares me is not putting my best foot forward. It's OK to lose to someone better than me, but I hated the idea of losing to someone because I was fatigued or didn't put forth my best effort. As far as nerves go, you can't kill what's inside you. It's best to use those nerves to make you react; make you sharper.

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Sesame Workshop, which produces the youth-oriented 'Sesame Street' television program for the PBS network, said that it will begin selling a DVD soon that is geared towards kids living in military families.

The DVD will have a touch more emotional compassion along with more emotional lessons instead of academic letters and numbers, according to production officials. Insured vets are the target market here, as they return and explain war to their kids.

This comes on the heels of a similar DVD released last year under the Sesame Street label that was geared specifically to open up family discussions about military deployments. With more than a million U.S. kids having parents in the military, these DVDs sound like excellent tools that can easily be relatable to those impressionable kids.

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Whether you support the current Iraq war or not, it's hard not to adamantly support the soldiers that return from the battlefield. Are we not a country founded on freedom principles? We sure are, but when those soldiers take off the uniform and try to relax back into a civilian lifestyle, physical ailments sometimes are the least of their problems.

Thoughts of suicide, depression and other emotional maladies plague thousands of returning soldiers these days, and the apparently lack of care being shown to many of them are downright disturbing. Why is this?

Not only are some of these heroes physical casualties, but more and more are becoming economic casualties if they come back to attempt a normal life in the country they've served. Whereas some citizens poach on the system to pay for anything and everything, the welfare of soldiers stands on the line, says experts. To me, it's not a tough decision.

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In honour of Independence day and the troops that risk their lives for our freedom, here's an inspiring story from eDiets about a soldier in Iraq who takes time out his busy, frightening days to exercise.

When Sgt. Joe Chiarella arrived in Iraq, he was determined to keep in shape, and he and his fellow soldiers built a makeshift gym using spare plywood, old gear and sandbags. As the war continued, they found themselves constantly adding to their 'gym' by welding pieces together, upholstering their benches and giving their equipment a fresh coat of pain. Joe takes a little time out of every day to work in a workout, because he knows it's important to keep in shape.

A story like this kind of makes our excuses for not going to the gym a bit petty, don't you think?

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The Navy has been pushing, for awhile now, to begin testing a new blood substitute on trauma victims in emergencies where they might not otherwise survive. The FDA's advisory panel has voted against allowing the use of Hemopure, derived from cow's blood, in these situations because the critically injured patients tested on would not be able to give consent in most cases.

The Navy argues that they desperately need a way of immediately treating injured soldiers in the field who suffer from severe bleeding. Hemopure, because it doesn't require refrigeration and is universally compatible, offers that solution and could save many of the 68% of the soldiers injured in combat that die before reaching a hospital setting. The Navy currently proposes trial testing in the civilian setting, most likely on young male trauma victims under the influence of alcohol, because the battlefield is too unpredictable and uncontrollable an environment.

Although I see the Navy's argument, I have to agree with the FDA panel on this one. Testing on people without their consent is risky business, and animal testing is bad enough -- let's not start on each other.

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