by Jane Benson
WASHINGTON (Army News Service, Jan. 12, 2000) -
Scientists in the Department of Defense Combat Feeding Program are working to ensure that
the soldier of the future has plenty of nourishment within arm's length.
Although the product is still planted in the
conceptual phase, scientists are working on a nutrition patch called the Transdermal
Nutrient Delivery System, TDNDS, that would be used by warfighters under extreme
circumstances.
The system would conceivably expand on the
osmotic technology of the nicotine patch that is worn on the arm. However, instead of
transmitting nicotine, this patch will transmit vitamins and nutrients needed by the human
body. The patch would be used to keep the warfighter at optimum performance for a day or
two, until he or she has access to a real meal and the time to eat it.
Gerald Darsch is the joint project director for
the DoD Combat Feeding Program, which is part of the Natick Soldier Center at the U.S.
Army Soldier Systems Center (Natick).
"TDNDS would be used during periods of
high-intensity conflict," Darsch said. "It is not intended to ever replace a
turkey dinner with all the fixings."
Darsch explained that the patch's ingredients
could also include nutraceuticals. These chemicals could tell a hungry soldier's brain
that his stomach is full or reduce combat-related stress, such as muscle fatigue and
physical problems associated with prolonged cold weather exposure and high altitude.
In the future, the patch could possibly
transmit nutrients in one of several ways.
According to Darsch, a microchip processor
would interact with sensors to determine a warfighter's metabolic requirements. The
microchip processor would then activate a microelectrical mechanical system to transmit
the micronutrients. Nutrients would be transported via skin pores that have been opened by
electrical impulses, or through microdialysis, which would pump nutrients directly into
blood capillaries. Another potential vehicle for transport could involve controlled
release of encapsulated nutrients through the skin.
Dr. C. Patrick Dunne of the DoD Combat Feeding
Program, said that the patch has civilian, as well as military, applications. In the
future, the patch could be used by workers in a variety of stressful, hazardous work
environments. For example, the patch could potentially be used by miners, oil rig workers,
firefighters, chemical production or cleanup workers, as well as by astronauts involved in
space walks or space station repair.
However, Darsch pointed out that TDNDS is still
an early concept.
"Will the TDNDS be achievable as we
envision it today? Maybe not. Are we investing heavily in it today? Absolutely not,"
he said. "Nevertheless, it has been said the best way to predict the future is to
invent it. Natick has already received calls from several world-class companies to begin
to explore a partnership to determine the feasibility of this concept."
Pending significant technological
breakthroughs, Darsch estimates that the system could be available to military personnel
around the year 2025.
Natick is part of U.S. Army Soldier and Biological Chemical Command. For more
information about SBCCOM or the Soldier Systems Center, please visit their web site at: http://www.sbccom.army.mil.
(Editor's note: Jane Benson works at the Public
Affairs Office of the U.S. Army Soldier Systems Center (Natick).)
Link to original news item:
http://www.dtic.mil/armylink/news/Jan2000/a20000112nutritionpatch.html