A proposed bill on Beacon Hill would ban youth tackle football for children in grades seven and under, with a fine for schools or leagues found in violation. Proponents of the “NO HITS” (No Organized Head Impacts to Schoolchildren) Act say it’s an important step in preventing brain disease among young people, with research out of Boston University adding to the collection of studies on the long-term harms that repeated hits to the head can have.
How is youth tackle football like smoking? The longer you play, the greater the risk. Over time, a child’s risk of developing CTE from tackle may add up faster than a smoker’s risk of developing lung cancer.
“We have sufficient data now to say that we are very confident that this relationship that we are finding is not due to chance, it’s a clear relationship,” said Dr. Jesse Mez, lead author on the study and director of the Boston University Alzheimer’s Disease Center
See how Boston University Alzheimer’s Disease Center’s Dr. Lee Goldstein is collaborating with Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in their awesome new video series, “Inside the Lab.”
Study shows hockey great Stan Mikita suffered from CTE.
The biggest stars in the world are pledging their brains. Young players are leaving the game with their destinies unfulfilled. The stories they tell spark fear and raise questions. And the science hasn’t even begun to provide answers.
With a new NFL season starting, concerns about head injuries in football are expected to ramp up again.
But now the discussion is expanding to women’s soccer. On the heels of this summer’s World Cup, researchers are preparing to study the potential toll on women from a lifetime of head impacts, including heading the ball.
— But factors not associated with head trauma emerge, too
Hall of Fame linebacker pledged to donate his brain to BU CTE Center for research
This week’s Coming Home Well podcast features Dr. Ann McKee talking veterans, Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy & Traumatic Brain Injury – Click HERE to listen.