Being a soldier is risky business, and being on the wrong end of a missile, bomb or bullet is just part of it.

The military workplace is hazardous in many ways.

Canadian troops and air and naval crews serving with the North Atlantic Treaty Organization routinely struggle with toxic conditions, made worse when bombs are falling nearby.

Some have fallen prey to ``Gulf War'' or ``Balkan'' syndrome, a baffling malaise involving crippling headaches, nausea, fatigue, depression and other symptoms.

That's hardly surprising, given the array of noxious substances to which troops can be exposed.

In the Gulf War, oil refineries were set alight, spewing lethal gases into the air. During the Kosovo war, power plants were hit, releasing cancer-causing PCBs and who knows what other toxic chemicals. In the Balkans, already contaminated by Chernobyl's nuclear dust, peacekeepers dug in over toxic soil.

Much of NATO's equipment is radiation-driven. And military machinery is maintained with solvents, fuels, oils and other harmful chemicals.

Then there is NATO's ``depleted uranium'' scare, which is currently making headlines.

Depleted uranium is a tough, high-density metal with residual levels of radioactivity. It's used in armour-piercing projectiles.

Studies in Canada and elsewhere have routinely failed to turn up evidence that exposure to depleted uranium has harmed troops. But the United Nations has just reported finding radioactive contamination at sites in Kosovo struck by NATO. And breathing in the dust and vapour from explosions could cause cancer.

This has led European Commission President Romano Prodi to urge NATO to take a fresh look at these risks. He cites six leukemia deaths in the 60,000 Italian troops who have served in the Balkans. The Belgians and Portuguese also report a few deaths. There's concern, too, for civilians exposed to these weapons.

When NATO weighs this request on Tuesday, Canada should urge that the answer be Yes. NATO countries invest hundreds of billions a year in defence. They can afford the few millions a serious, reassuring study would require. And scientists unconnected with the military should be part of the mix, to provide confidence.

If depleted uranium does pose a risk, it should be removed from the NATO arsenal, as hazardous equipment would be.

But the scares over Gulf War syndrome and depleted uranium should be a general wake-up call.

NATO must make soldiers' health its first priority. That means putting more resources into combat hazard-assessment, and protection.

NATO also needs to devise better ways to track military illnesses, and to share data on them.

And NATO must be generous to military personnel who fall ill. They should be given every break by panels that adjudicate pensions and disability benefits, and they should be offered other military jobs when possible. That hasn't always been the case.

Women and men in uniform who serve Canada, NATO and the United Nations face dangers and stresses that few civilians can imagine. The risk is substantial, the rewards all too few.

We can do better.

Letters to Editor: lettertoed@thestar.ca