I admit it-I am a fan. I grew up right in the middle of college football.My father was a football coach, first at the highschool level, then college, for all of my youth. I played, my brother played (and eventually played at the collegiate level), and my Dad spent all his time coaching, recruiting, and scouting. I have many fond memories.
As a doctor now I see the downstream effects, and I ponder the wisdom of encouraging youth to pursue football as a hobby.
As a doctor now I see the downstream effects, and I ponder the wisdom of encouraging youth to pursue football as a hobby.
It only makes sense the repeated microtrauma to joints and soft tissues results in a wearing down process. Almost like repeatedly running over potholes in ones car will prematurely cause the shocks to wear and eventually fail, repeatedly running into other people must result in premature wear and tear of the body. I have an ex pro football player in my practice. Though relatively young, he has a "bum" knee that precludes him playing tennis with his son. Another college level player has chronic neck pain that makes long plane rides almost impossible without Vicodin. Yet another ex pro player has low back pain which makes exercise almost impossible and which has resulted in him being clinically obese. Can premature heart disease be far behind. Now there are new and worrisome data that there also may be cognitive effects of repeated blows to the head (loss of brain function)-that is why we suddenly see at the pro level a new emphasis on recovery and playing restrictions after concussion.
All this leads me to wonder. Is it possible that those parents who encourage their kids to play football are in effect increasing the likelihood of their child experiencing premature aging and death? Is there a longevity price to be paid? Could it be that football participation and repeated head trauma leads to poorer school performance, and a diminution of ones eventual academic and career achievements?
These questions may never be answered given the difficulty of gathering such long term data. I hope the answer is "no", but fear that is not the case. My hope for football- I hope that new technology in equipment allows for better force absorption and protection of body parts. I hope that the use of size,speed,and performance enhancing drug use by athletes will be effectively banned. I hope that rules changes reduce the risk of unnecessary head and neck injury, and new blocking and tackling techniques become widely accepted by coaches and fans.
I am quietly glad my son chose tennis.
Yet thats feels so "unAmerican"...
All this leads me to wonder. Is it possible that those parents who encourage their kids to play football are in effect increasing the likelihood of their child experiencing premature aging and death? Is there a longevity price to be paid? Could it be that football participation and repeated head trauma leads to poorer school performance, and a diminution of ones eventual academic and career achievements?
These questions may never be answered given the difficulty of gathering such long term data. I hope the answer is "no", but fear that is not the case. My hope for football- I hope that new technology in equipment allows for better force absorption and protection of body parts. I hope that the use of size,speed,and performance enhancing drug use by athletes will be effectively banned. I hope that rules changes reduce the risk of unnecessary head and neck injury, and new blocking and tackling techniques become widely accepted by coaches and fans.
I am quietly glad my son chose tennis.
Yet thats feels so "unAmerican"...
