NFL Veterans Who Started Young Face Decline in Mental Skills

A study on former National Football League (NFL) players suggests that playing football before adolescence increases the possibility of cognitive impairment in later life. Researchers at the Boston University School of Medicine were able to show the correlation of concussion history with degeneration in mental skills. Findings emphasise the importance of protection when engaging in rough sports activities during the crucial ages of brain development. There are around 4.8 million young athletes playing football in the United States, and so the health impacts of sports-related concussions are regarded as major concerns.

Super Bowl veterans, who participated in this study, reported enduring an average of 400 concussions during their lifetime. The research team performed several neuropsychological tests on 42 former NFL players with ages ranging from 40 to 69 and grouped them based on their age of first exposure to tackle football. The group who played football beyond 12 years of age performed significantly better in the tests than those with earlier football exposure.

Prof. Robert Stern, the study’s lead author, told The Associated Press that there is a certain period during puberty in which the brain develops further. Therefore, head injuries incurred during that stage in life may lead to both temporary and long-term concerns. Dr. Stern reiterates utmost care for the brain and highlights its importance. He presents this question,"… Do we want to expose our children to anything that may have significant negative consequences for how that brain is going to work later in life?

Although a professional football fan and advocate of youth sports, Dr. Stern says he could no longer watch youth football matches. He adds, "It does not make sense to me, as someone who studies the brain and as someone who has four kids, to foster repetitive hits to the kids' brains at a young age. Does that really make logical sense? Do we want to do that to our children at that age whose brains are rapidly developing?"

This study, which was published in the journal Neurology, focused analysis on former NFL athletes. Large-scale and longitudinal studies are suggested to substantiate initial findings. These could provide various sports organizations recommendations to consider when training and competing in youth leagues. Although there is increasing awareness on sports-related concussions, there is still widespread misperception and controversy on how to manage the inevitability of head injuries in sports, according to the Institute of Medicine of the National Academies.

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