This project is sponsored by the Department of Defense, The Samueli Institute and the National Institutes of Health. The approximate start date for the project is September 30, 2006. A report will be issued at the end of the project (May 31, 2008) in approximately 20 months. An expert committee will analyze the patterns of dietary supplement use among military personnel, and by examining published reviews of the scientific evidence, the committee will identify those patterns that are beneficial and/or warrant concern due to risks to health or performance. The committee will also develop a system to monitor adverse health effects, and recommend a framework to identify the need for actively managing dietary supplement use by military personnel. Specifically, the committee will:

1. Review survey data and findings, which will be made available to the committee, related to supplement use by military personnel to identify: a) which dietary supplements are of most prevalent use with consideration for differences according to demographic grouping factors such as age, rank, sex, deployment status, military occupational specialty, organization and unit; and b) expectations of benefits and reasons for use of dietary supplements by military personnel.
    
2. Identify information gaps regarding dietary supplement use by military personnel and recommend processes and designs by which current and future usage of supplements (including dosages, quality, and forms of supplement) should be monitored, surveyed, analyzed, reported, and shared.
    
3. Select a limited number of dietary supplements, from those identified in question one as commonly used. On the basis of already published reports that review the available scientific evidence, identify those that may be of benefit and/or pose serious hazards to the health and/or physical and cognitive performance capability of military personnel and determine whether further examination and integrative evaluation or research is warranted. Consider potential effects of supplement withdrawal and interactions.
    
4. Consider existing military policies for managing dietary supplements. Assess the applicability to a military setting of the framework outlined in the IOM report Dietary Supplements: A Framework to Evaluate Safety and determine how it could it be modified to determine which supplements need active management by the military.
    
5. Develop a model that could be followed to monitor military personnel for adverse health effects that might indicate a concern associated with consumption of dietary supplements.