THE Ministry of Defence has been testing controversial drugs aimed at making military personnel stronger, faster-thinking and quicker at recovering from fatigue.

The drugs — some banned from Olympic sports — range from modafinil, which raises the IQ, to creatine, used by bodybuilders.

Defence scientists have also been experimenting with prescription sedatives like temazepam and diazepam, aimed at helping soldiers get vital sleep between bouts of combat. And they have looked at pemoline, a drug designed to help children concentrate.

Details of the experiments emerged after a researcher from Qinetiq, one of the contractors doing the testing, was asked to give evidence to MPs. “There is a lot of research funded by the MoD into substances like modafinil, ephedrine, those types of things,” Anna Casey told a select committee investigating drug misuse in sport. “It does not mean such substances are being used (operationally) but it does mean they are keeping an open mind.”

The research is linked to a £20m MoD programme to find novel ways to improve the performance of soldiers.

Besides Qinetiq, the money is being given to six universities — Nottingham, Loughborough, Birmingham, Cardiff, Glasgow and Cranfield School of Management — and a dozen firms that specialise in boosting human performance.

This weekend the MoD released a list of the substances it has been researching, including dichloroacetate and ubiquinone, thought to reduce fatigue and aid recovery, and ephedrine, a stimulant.

A US military study has shown combat stress can hit soldiers’ performance. After a week of combat exercises they performed worse than if they were drunk or sedated.

But there are risks. The practice of offering US aircrew amphetamines was criticised after two F-16 pilots bombed a Canadian unit in Afghanistan in 2002, killing four soldiers.

Colonel Bob Stewart, who served in Bosnia in the early 1990s, said such drugs could assist troops. “When you have to stay awake for a long time they could be a great help.”

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