Should we let our children play full-contact football?
Photo by Ben Hershey on Unsplash
As the true dangers of a concussion continue to come to light with the discovery of CTE and the effects it has on the brain, parents across America continue to ask themselves if they want their children to play full-contact football. Below, we discuss what CTE is, how it occurs, its prevalence, and what parents should do with this information. We are not going to make any recommendations for you but simply present the information and let you decide the answer for yourself.
Notably, before diving into CTE itself, it’s worth noting that a new study done by The Ohio State University found that 45% of Americans believed that tackle football is “appropriate for kids” with 50% disagreeing and 5% giving “don’t know” answers. Additionally, various data and studies have shown that football participation, not just at the youth level but also at the high school level has seen a bit of a decline over the last 10-15 years. While it’s impossible to truly correlate the drop in participation to CTE and other brain-related issues regarding the sport, it is quite notable to mention in regard to this conversation.
What is CTE?
CTE, is also known as chronic traumatic encephalopathy. CTE is attributed to repeated trauma to the head and brain, usually through contact sports such as football but also boxing, wrestling, other mixed martial arts, ice hockey, and more.
CTE generally is considered to have four stages and can take up to about a decade to begin showing symptoms. Early symptoms are very similar to those when someone would suffer a concussion, confusion, disorientation, dizziness, and headaches. It will then continue to advance over time leading to memory loss, impulsive behavior often caused by poor judgment. It can advance as serious as dementia, depression, and more severe issues which can include depression and suicidal tendencies. That being said, not all cases of CTE advance the same way or at the same rate.
How prevalent is CTE?
Unfortunately, while we can give educated guesses if someone has CTE based on their personal history and symptoms, there is no way to officially diagnose CTE prior to death. That being said, according to a study done by the Boston University CTE center that looked at the brains of 376 former NFL players, 345 players were diagnosed with chronic traumatic encephalopathy. A stunning 91.7% rate. While CTE isn’t common in the general population, it can occur but is very rare. For example, in 2018, the Boston University CTE Center did a study of 164 brains both of men and women from the general population. Only one brain showed signs of CTE. That one brain was the brain of a former college football player. The NFL has taken measures to ensure player safety by implementing rules that protect players. They now have a concussion protocol but many skeptics say it isn’t good enough. With so much money being at stake some question if teams will really put the players safety first. The NFL continues to grow in popularity. Looking to expand by playing international games in Mexico and England. The NFL season is just a few months away, a BetMGM bonus code Massachusetts will have all NFL fans looking to support their favorite team this season covered if you’re looking to add excitement to this season’s games.
It’s safe to say that CTE is very much an inherited risk in contact sports, especially one such as football where head trauma is an occurrence nearly every play. While the trauma may not result in a concussion every time, the repeated blows to the head stack up very quickly. This shouldn’t come as a surprise either, as previous studies have shown that NFL players suffer hits multiple times throughout a game that is as forceful as low to medium-speed car crashes. Additionally, prior studies such as one done by the University of Florida found that in 30% of brains that suffered repeated trauma, CTE was present at the time of death.
Should children play full-contact football?
Photo by Ben Hershey on Unsplash
Limiting the amount of head trauma one suffers earlier in their age is quite important.
One could make the argument that to a certain age, that flag football could be just as useful as full-contact football. At a young age, it should come down to learning the fundamentals which, while tackling is a fundamental part of football, is something that can still be taught at a later age, perhaps even more successfully so as well. There is no doubt that flag football would be a safer alternative earlier in life for children who are interested in football, it still allows for the rush of playing football but with the inherited dangers cut drastically down. As children get older, transition into full-contact football. While the inherited risks are still very much there, lowering the opportunities earlier in life for head trauma occurring could possibly help in lowering rates of CTE occurring.
Additionally, over the last few years, upgrades in football helmets are occurring. Helmets are becoming better at absorbing impacts and lessening the impact on the brain every year. That being said, newer helmets are going to be more expensive and won’t be able to be found at the youth level commonly for quite some time due to the costs involved. So eventually, children playing full-contact football will have additional lesser inherited risks than it currently does but no matter how great of a helmet there is, the risks of concussions and serious head trauma will always be prevalent when playing football. Utilize mesh fence banners to advertise safety rules.
The inherited risks have to be simply accepted when playing football, there is no getting around them. However, as a society, we must continue to progress not just in the safety of players at all levels when it comes to brain injuries but also in how we treat brain injuries once they have occurred. Concussions used to be disregarded quite quickly prior to the discovery of CTE but since then, society’s treatment of concussions and other brain injuries has dramatically changed. That must continue to be the case going forward. While football will forever remain a favorite sport for Americans to watch, it is clear that some families are not willing to accept the inherited risks while some are. Now that you’ve been presented with the facts of the mater, it’s time to make your own decision of whether or not you believe children should be playing full contact football.
