Research Finds Football Hits May Lead to Brain Injury. Many of you know I have worked as an RN for over 30 years and a few of those years I worked with those with brain injuries. I was always stunned at how glibly parents allowed their children to participate in sports activities that could easily cause permanent damage to their fragile bodies.
Researcher: Blows to Head Kill Brain Cells, Lead to Dysfunction
Omalu compared a region of the brain of a normal, middle-aged individual to a football player’s. His analysis showed an accumulation of brown staining in the football player’s brain.
The brown blotches mark the accumulation of tau protein—an abnormal substance that can emerge within the brain after repeated blows to the head. It’s known to kill off brain cells, ultimately leading to cognitive dysfunction, even dementia, Omalu said. It’s rare to find accumulation in the brain of a 90-year-old—but at the time it was almost unheard of in a man of 50.
The rest of the article is quite extensive and well worth a read..
I recently started a thread to curb our obsession with sports.. Abolishing Balls is a great thread to examine the reasons to change our cultural focus..
Hey Richey! I agree that blows to the head can’t be good. But there must be a difference in degrees. A parent who lets their 5-yr. old (of which I am not) play football with other 5-yr. olds isn’t letting them get hit by 300 lb. linebackers. What age range was the study done. If people are over 18 they can make the choice to get hit or not. Of course it isn’t great to get hit but people have the choice in this country to pursue a lucrative, yet dangerous career.
Thanx Carrie..here’s the deal the way I see it..We’re not just talking about professional football..When the brain which is like jello enclosed in a hard shell( the skull) gets hit..even once ..and this doesn’t have to be hard enough to cause unconsciousness.. small lesions occur in the brain tissue..think of these as scars ..and this scar tissue can prevent the brain from working at it’s optimum..in worse cases you just can’t function at all..This is especially true for young people who’s brain is still growing..
Do you see any other animals running into each other repeatedly..That would be a no because they wouldn’t survive very long because they need their brain to function properly to continue to thrive.
In my opinion even small hits to the head can cause permanent damage..And lets face it we need every brain cell we can get.. to get in along in this complex world.
.Do I think it’s irresponsible for parents to encourage their children to bump heads? Yes..Just because everybody else is doing it doesn’t make it a good thing to do. In light of the new evidence that is coming forth concerning football and brain injury , we need to reassess whether we want to risk harming our youth..Sure it’s fun, builds character bla bla bla..But is it worth making our children permanently brain impaired ?
I know this is said in jest..But there is a stereo type of “stupid football players” ..Unfortunately this is a stereo type that may be true. Sad news for all you football fans,,I personally find ping pong to be very exciting..
so, you played a lot of football growing up, richey?
or did the jocks just bash your head in after practice?
Actually I am a fairly big guy and naturally muscular..My father was a semi -professional boxer. and he enjoyed showing me how to defend myself, by kicking my ass..Long story short, most folks don’t have a clue as to how to defend themselves. I do..and I left many a brain damaged foot ball player unconscious on the ground…no brag just fact..
You on the other hand , you long haired hippy pot smoking fiend..( I mean that in the nicest way).I still have a mean right hook,,that would put you into next week. But I’m not like that anymore..
I don’t think I threatened anyone..I just said I have a mean right hook..in response to Piffy’s suggesting I was beaten up by football players...I have no desire to harm anyone here..I actually like most people..You’re kinda growing on me Bugg..you serve a purpose,,and I think you are a fine representation of your generation. And you are quite a talented music reviewer..
So what do you think about football destroying the brains of our youth.?
How do feel about irresponsible parents who encourage their children to butt heads with other children that result in permanent mental problems..
I would like to see a criminal penalty..similar to parents that knowingly cook meth in their kitchen that create toxic off gases that result in permanent brain damage to children..Or parents that cause brain damage by shaking their children violently…
I guess where I’m coming from is this..As I’ve said.. I’ve worked with brain damaged folks..2 years with adolescents..It’s totally sad..these poor kids trust their parents to take care of them and help prevent them from messing themselves up…
When a parent knowingly puts their child in a situation where they have a good chance of suffering a debilitating injury..that’s criminal neglect..
Parents listen up..new evidence..football can mess your kid up forever!!! Let them play base ball..and tell them to watch out for the bats…
I ‘m glad you brought that up..Badminton is highly under rated..Played in college and it is quite a work out..
Now Ken ..you obviously have maintained most of your brain cells,,over the years..I’m guessing watching films leaves most of your brain intact..Football..Yea or nay?
I’m not one to say because I learned early on in phys. ed. that if I stood very still when forced to engage in football the others would go about their business and leave me unmolested by their frivolity.
