Concussions in Sports

Concussions in sports is really starting to become a big problem. The evidence is mounting that shows that concussions are detrimental to athlete's brains. This is no surprise because the neuroscience community has done research proving that damage to the prefrontal cortex effects your impulse control, aggression and short-term memory. Damage to the prefrontal cortex is a common symptom of people with antisocial personality disorder. Antisocial personality disorder effects people who have a hard time behaving in ways that are normal and accepted by society, leading them to often become criminals or become prone to addiction. It is no surprise that many former NFL players have problems with substance abuse and depression. When someone suffers a concussion, the prefrontal cortex, located directly in the front part of the brain, is normally damaged. As players in all sports but especially football continue to get bigger, stronger and faster; concussions are becoming more prevalent as well as more severe. There is not a week that goes by in the NFL without seeing a player laying on the field unconscious after a hit. There was a study done on a college football practice during the team's training camp that said that one linemen experienced the equivalent of 75 minor car accidents in one day. This kind of trauma certainly has an effect on the brain.
I question the NFL's commitment to player safety while they attempt to make the season include two more games per year. Similar to what I said in the NBA post, they want to go for quantity over quality because two more games will, put simply, cause more injuries and lower the quality of play. At some point, someone has to make a decision that puts common sense and human values (such as the health of players) over money. It is simply the rich trying to get richer as these wealthy owners want to push these players further than they can go (I have not heard of one player in favor of the season expansion). However, just like anything else, sports is now a business and the people at the top are taking the integrity out of it little by little. With things like this happening you cannot fault the players for holding out and trying to squeeze out as much money as possible. They are putting their future health in serious jeopardy. Not only is their physical health compromised because of all the weight they put on and injuries they are expected to play through, but now their brains are in very serious danger as well. Look no further than former professional boxers to see the effects of too many shots to the head. I think that the rule changes that are trying to protect players are not very effective because it takes away from the game, forcing defensive players to have to play differently and there is nothing worse when a team gets a 15 yard penalty to keep a drive alive for one of these new player safety rules. They need to come up with better equipment. They need to go with the foam egg-shell coverings that people have used in the past. However, they currently are bulky and just very ugly so players will not want to wear them although they are very effective. They need to find a way to make them look sleek and attractive so we can cut down on the injuries and get back to the greatest game in the world being played the way it is supposed to be played. When its all said and done all football players would rather accept the future consequences than have to change the game. Football is the greatest thing in my life and was really the only thing that forced me to become both physically and mentally tough. There is something about the game that doesn't allow you to leave it once you start. -Buzzy

Picture of the Egg-shell helmet: