I am 13 years old and I play football. My thing is, we take risks everyday. When you drive a vehicle, you risk death every time that you take the wheel. So If you are going to outlaw football, you better make everybody walk to work to. You can't live life in a bubble, and people need to learn that.
My 7 year old son will never play football.
It's a dangerous sport. The injury levels are high, and they only get higher as athletes get older. Why in the world would we encourage him to do such a thing? Especially when, as another poster noted, playing football when young seems to encourage nothing more than watching football all weekend when older?
Instead, we're encouraging him to find sports and athletic activities he can enjoy for the rest of his life. Biking, running, swimming, basketball, golf, tennis, etc - all are much safer, require a greater degree of athleticism, and can be enjoyed throughout his lifetime.
2
It may not be much longer until football is relegated to the margins, like boxing. Over time, fewer and fewer young boys will enter the game, and because the rest of the world doesn't play American football, the talent pool will inevitably shrink. The NFL and college football may still be swimming in prosperity, but the fate of this brutal sport is a slow and steady decline.
@Richard Steele Agreed. Although college football continues to swim in prosperity for now, those profits may soon be swept away by an already growing tidal wave of CTE related litigation - high schools too.
1
It doesn’t matter the sport football, soccer etc. head injuries occur and more likely than not your child may get symptoms or even CTE. As parents we vow to protect our children as much as possible. I think it’s tough in the US for parents as so many social events at all age levels are centered around sports like football and soccer.
But we have the research now and we know that your brain is not supposed to be knocked around inside your skull. Coaches cannot protect kids. I don’t care how much training they’ve had. Those are false promises. You never know what’s going to happen on any given day with another team.
Playing any sport where there is a great chance of head injury is knowingly stupid. You may not see the effects today but they will emerge someday. Why take that risk?
5
What I read is each parent says my kid is the biggest and will be great. I worked with young swimmers for 40 years and heard almost the same thing. My kid is fast-the next Michael Phelps (substitute current star de jour).
Not likely-your kid is just big. Maybe more coordinated but big. By 16 +- it all evens out. Mom Dad-Look in the mirror. Are you the size of Pro players-No-Likely your kids won't be either.
Face reality. Best, biggest, fastest in you neighbourhood is a poor predictor for future.
3
Get him out of there.
He's in a place where 'built for football' is a thing. Goes with a lot of other allied things, many of which we read about in the news these days. His body will probably recover. But his spirit, not so likely.
1
What do you want for your children? Do you want them involved in athletics for as long as possible, hopefully active in some athletic way in the world thru their middle age and into their senior years, relatively ready and able?
Or do you want them engaged in a glory is fleeting athletic activity they cannot do once they leave the school, wasting their early adult weekends nursing nagging injuries with a six pack of beer sedentary on the couch watching State on Saturday and the Not For Long boys on Sunday?
It's your pick. I can tell you which one the world wants, and it ain't couch potato Al Bundy.
You parents do yourselves a big fat favor, and get your athletic kid in front of a sports physiologist, and pay that expert to tell you what sport your kid is good at, endurance or sprinting, jumping or weightlifting, it will be the best money you have ever spent in your life, you won't waste time, and you won't be the idiot in the stands screaming at the coach, the opponents, the officials, frustrated your kid isn't a superstar. Stop acting dumb and be a pro parent, get a grip, do your job.
Your kids will flourish and you'll be proud. Or you could just whine and moan you do not know what to do and hope for the best because a kid who doesn't know squat picked a flashy sport for all the wrong reasons.
2
It is a dangerous game, period. Our nation's love of this game is killing players, killing kids. It's time to let football go.
4
My brother and sister-in-law raised their four children in McKinney, Texas where football is a religion-nay- a CULT. The high school football stadium cost $70 MILLION DOLLARS and the players (including my eldest nephew) are treated like demi-gods. To the point where each player is assigned one or more ‘bleacher babes’ who’s job throughout the season is to ‘support’ their assigned player (e.g. wear his jersey number, dress up in short skirts and ribbons to root for him at every home game, give him little presents, and - I kid you not- bake him cookies).
My brother and sister-in-law think this is normal.
7
@PM The togetherness of that community sounds nice tbh.
I wonder how many Nobel Prize winners ever played tackle football? At last report there has never been a single death reported of any member of any Math team in practice sessions or in competition; the same goes for the swimming team, the track team, golf team, debating team, and volleyball team. Must be they're made of tougher stuff than the wimps on the football team.
8
@Sara M
Bravo, well said.
And they likely won’t ever have CTE, and can enjoy normal cognitive function throughout their adulthood. I call that winning!
1
Grown-ups succumbing to peer pressure. Pitiful,
3
I've never seen so many beyond ignorant comments on an article. Based on these comments there's a large number of people out there who would consider it child abuse if a parent doesn't have their child live in a bubble. Girls soccer has a higher concussion rate than football. https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/recruiting-insider/wp/2017/03/27/gir...
Two of the largest problems in the USA 1)obesity 2) kids glued to screens. Football addresses both of these things. Football is the only sport that has positions for big kids.
2
This is laughable.
Saying you should play football because soccer is also dangerous is like saying you should start smoking because driving on your phone while texting is also dangerous.
Totally agree that obesity and screens are an issue. But how do you reconcile the obesity concern with all of the kids who feel pressure to get just a bit bigger to play football? Or the screen time issue with all the adults who played football while they were younger, got hurt, can't play anymore, and now spend all weekend on the couch watching football, becuase they never learned to be athletic in any other way?
For those big kids: try swimming, wrestling, basketball, hiking, track, golf, tennis, weightlifting, volleyball, biking, or any of the other hundreds of sports out there. Or, for the stronger kid, try one of the newer adventure sports like tough mudders or spartan races. Most of these lead to a lifetime of fitness.
1
"The last two years, I’ve been telling him to eat more and try to bulk up or get taller, but it hasn’t worked. — (name )"
What an obstinate son, who doesn't get taller when his father tells him to!
He should be grounded for at least a month - or at least until he grows another 5 ins.!
5
Stop playing this stupid sport. Stop letting your kids get brain damage so they can play this dumb sport. If you think your boy needs "football to be a man" you might want to reexamine your ability to be a parent.
4
As a parent it is your job to deliver to your grown child a body not consciously abused in any way. That includes the later effects of contact sports. My son was encouraged to join the football team by the coach. He wanted to aid no. play. His parents said no.
Phys ed has always been more about staffing teams than real eduction and amateur kids leagues are an adjunct. Little, if anything I learned in PE enabled me to be fit as an adult. The pressure exerted by coaches has to be weighed against the very small odds that they really can deliver something of lasting benefit to the kids. there are sports that don't lead to CTE (like swimming). there are plenty of ways of using a large physique--like helping parents with year work. What a coach says should be seen as purely sef-serving of little if any educational or physical benefit to child involved and the prestige given to these opinions needs to be openly and clearly questioned. Sometimes this can be more obvious than others---the football and basketball coaches at my high school didn't do much for my classmates, but certainly made the effort for their own children who also were part of my class.
A much better ball game is soccer. Of course there is a risk of injury - like in all sports - , but soccer is much safer - and far less macho with women's/girls' teams on the rise. This also makes soccer a much more "educating" sport than "football".
I wonder how that stupid name caught on.
2
@Jesper Bernoe How is soccer a more educating sport? You have to learn plays, assignments and formations in football. Did you know that girl's soccer has more concussions than football.
3
I am appalled by all the simplistic and one-sided comments about this article.
It is one thing to argue that children (or even adults) should not play tackle football until a good solution to the concussion issue is found.
But too many of the comments seem to be from people who just don't get football. Which is fine if you then stick to talking about things you do get.
Football is a hugely important part of many boys' lives. It is the source of their self-confidence, their leadership skills. It is where they make many of their lifelong friends. It is what gets them in great physical shape (injuries aside), aerobically fit and strong. Being on the football team gets them invited to parties, helps them find nice girlfriends, gives them a support structure for when they need it. There is a reason why boys will go out and train in freezing rain on a Tuesday night when they could easily stay home and watch a movie.
To deny all this because you personally don't understand football is just ignorant, and devalues your argument.
Right now we have a real problem with concussions and CTE. It needs to be addressed. The advice to just stop playing football is like telling people that abstinence is the best way to avoid pregnancy - it is literally true, but neither desirable or realistic as a solution.
We need people working hard and fast at finding a way to maintain football but eliminate the concussion risk. This can be done if those in charge are motivated to do it.
2
@Denis the problem is not concussions (although they don’t help) but repeated blows to the head. Every “bell ringer” and every hit that seemingly causes no damage...is causing damage. No helmet can stop that. (How do you keep an egg yolk from moving inside a shell?) It’s volume of hits. As someone who lost my father to stage 4 CTE, I’ve seen what even a few years of FB can do and it’s ugly and painful to watch. I agree killing football is not an option, but neither is focusing solely on concussions. Everything tackle football gives to a young boy in return gets taken away from a middle aged man and his family. We need to change the game in a real way as there is no safe way to have your brain slam into your skull on a regular basis.
1
@Denis Theres nothing inherently about football that confers those benefits. It’s becsuse we as a society glorify footballs. I suggest we spend time making a safer sport popular rather than try to fix football. If there was no football kids wouldn’t find some other way tom organize the social order.
1
These comments are certainly fascinating to read. I particularly liked the one about the pediatrician who "believed, given today’s focus on head safety, football was no more dangerous than any other contact sport at this level — soccer, basketball, etc. And I agreed with him". Just another indication that being a physician is no guarantee of wisdom. I still remember when many physicians felt that smoking was not actually a health risk.
14
It's about the real permanent brain damage incurred over arbitrary things like "yards". Only a truly idiotic parent, who cared little to none for their boy, would allow him to knowingly bash his brain against that of another boy.
15
@No big deal
Parents have to make complex choices, factoring in not just risks but also health, friendships, personal development and many other things. Nobody can deny (credibly) that there are many ways in which playing football enhances both quality of life and personal qualities which are important in later life.
Why would you insult parents who are obviously capable of seeing the world in a much more nuanced way than you are?
Are you proud of the fact that you totally fail to understand the importance of sport, of teamwork, of friendship, of the kind of trust that only comes in a physically intense situation where you have to be there for each other.
Maybe you could read some books about psychology or evolutionary biology to learn about why these things are important. Or look at the many successful businessmen who grew up playing football and credit it with building their character and resilience.
And I say this as a parent who would have serious concerns about letting my son play football unless some important things change.
So I'm not questioning your right to say that parents who let their children play are wrong.
I'm questioning your right to insult them and claim that they don't care for their children. I'm kind of surprised they published your comment.
1
@Denis,
The current President played high school football.
Your argument fails to persuade.
@Denis
"It is important to take a nuanced view. For example, maybe your son doesn't need a functioning brain? Maybe long term mental impairment is worth it for the sake of victory and manliness? Makes you think."
That is what you are saying.
I have a son who is big for his age and we have been approached by coaches who ask if he would be interested in playing football.
The answer is simple: Hell, no.
My brother played tackle football from age 8 to 18. He was a defensive lineman and suffered several concussions - that we know about. At 39 he is showing signs of CTE. Earlier this year, he ended up in a coma after surgery on an arthritic knee (why does he have arthritic knees at 39? Football) and they did an MRI of his brain. There are "anomalies" on the MRI. CTE is only diagnosable after death but the neurologist said my brother's brain has features that he sees in people with multiple traumatic brain injuries. It explained a lot about my brother and some of the inexplicable behavior we've seen in recent years.
So now we wait. How bad will it get? How much of himself will he lose before the end? My brother enjoyed playing football, but was never a star player. Didn't get any scholarships from it. He has significant joint and back pain from on-field injuries that he self-medicated with drugs and alcohol for a long time. Was it worth it, I asked him. His response: Hell, no.
Parents: just don't do it. You have to live with consequences of letting your kid play. Not your neighbors, or the coaches. My parents moved to my brother's neighborhood to help take care of him after the coma. That's their job now. My mom wishes she had never let him play. A hard decision in the moment that would have saved a lot of anguish.
31
@A. Thank you for writing. I am very sorry for your brother, and glad that you are adamantly against football for your son. I have the same concerns. Also have a big son who is 6'2" (age 14) and a good runner, but there is just no way -- good health matters more than football. Life is long and challenging enough -- you need a properly working brain. With all the studies that have come out about CTE, and the fact that you don't even need to be concussed -- it can happen just from continued routine jostling -- I can't believe anyone still wants their child to play tackle football.
10
@A. Thanks for sharing your story. I lost my father to stage 4 CTE. He only played for 7 years and never at a professional level. Looking back he was sick my entire life. My grandparents lived to see him die. They would have given anything to know what we know now. Your child will applaud you for this decision one day. My thoughts to your brother and family for the road ahead.
6
I have never in my life understood why anyone would want to get all in a lather by witnessing a group of hormone-laden individuals kick back and forth the remains of a dead pig....
Geeezzzz......!
5
Knowing what we now know about CTE, allowing your child to play football is nothing short of abuse. I know that is hard for many to digest, but it is the truth. If someone allowed their child to sniff glue and encouraged it, folks would have no problem castigating that parent as reckless and abusive. Football is no different; CTE takes a while to rear it’s horrific head... but it will
5
If your child asked to play on the Russian roulette team would you let him/her?
7
@Paul
Is there going to be tailgating?
3
Wow. Amazing how many parents are unconcerned about long term damage to their sons.
"The first few weeks of youth football are spent just learning how to properly tackle to avoid head injury. Helmets are replaced every year. Coaches take concussion training. As long as my son enjoys being out there for any of his sports, he will do them. I read the studies, but it’s just a risk and a risk doesn’t mean you shouldn’t. We take risks every day.
All fall we spend at the football fields; my 8-year-old plays and my two daughters cheer. It’s a family day at the fields. The organization is a feeling of community and it’s sad how many fewer kids we have playing every year. — Alaina Kenney, Mount Airy, Md."
Noted, Ms. Kenney
1
Parents who let their kids play football should be prosecuted for child abuse.
5
Parents reflect on the pressure and desire they feel to enroll their boys in tackle football, then have to face the brain damage and effect on society at large as these brain damaged individuals find they cannot play any longer. Hey, parents, GET YOUR KID SOME BOOKS INSTEAD!
5
If you beat your children and injure them in the process you can be arrested for child abuse. If you let your kids play football you should be arrested as well.
3
The story quotes parents who are "pressured" to have their kid(s) play football. American football is great to watch and stupid to play. Most players' game time is spent on a bench! If the game had any merit, people would play until late in life.
Adults who "pressure" parents in this time of CTE evidence have no place in society. The parents who succumb are fools or cowards.
7
"Who am I going to crush today?" Be careful, you might be the one crushed today.
7
"I have a 13-year-old and an 11-year-old boy and I finally let my 13-year-old play last year. He is big for his age and about the size of a high school student. I’m more comfortable with him playing, though it still bothers me."
Typical parental love --to heck with the other kids, just as long as mine is safe. Please try to have the capacity to realize your big son is out there socking it to the smaller kids. Feel "bothered" about that.
8
Parents, just say no.
9
If you love your son, don't let him play football. He will get brain damaged...no if's, and's or but's about it. https://youtu.be/kQR26Eq-NzY
2
Don’t do it. You are the parent. Take the kid off the field. Coaches want to win the next game and the current season, you want your son to have a successful life. There is great risk in football, and it is not worth your son’s future. If your son is disappointed, he will get over it; if he gets a severe concussion, he might not.
3
It’s not sad that enrollment is down, it’s called progress. My husband started 10 years in the NFL - our children do not, and will not play tackle football. We just know too much because we live the aftermath day in and day out. Not only is he struggling greatly with CTE like symptoms, many guys we know are. To the father that thinks size will protect you, you are wrong. I can assure you that at 6’7” and 320 pounds, a brain is still a brain, and it’s just not meant to slam into the skull. You do not want to live with the life altering damage that is left behind.
17
I just don't understand what the issue is. The research is in and it's definitive: contact sports have demonstratively negative effects on the brain with potentially deadly sequelae. Pathological analysis of brain specimens from professional, college, and high school football players show amyloid plaque deposition, various degrees of atrophy, and other dementia-defining characteristics usually found in 80+ year olds with conditions like Alzheimers. Who cares what your child is called in school by his peers? Who cares if other parents, relatives and friends moronically disagree with your decision to keep your child out of football. They are willfully disregarding the evidence. Your child's brain and higher level functioning is at stake and this is still a debatable issue for you?? This is a no brainer; pun certainly intended.
23
My closest friend from High School (1972) played back then and several years of college football. He is now confined to an assisted living facility, unable to speak, recognize the spoken word, or family members. He cannot feed himself or use the bathroom. He wears adult diapers. After a long decline, he has been there since age 59. All the macho youth and their adult enablers think "not me", but the evidence is overwhelming. Mike Webster, Dave Duerson, so forth, these are not "wimps".
8
There is no treatment for CTE. You also can't cure stupidity. Any parent who ignores the dangers is not fulfilling their duty to their children. I'd like to remind the parents who think soccer is a safer choice to pay attention to the stats and to the actual game. My daughter played soccer throughout her childhood and adolescent. She was knocked out 3 times. The heading of a ball causes constant hits to the brain. I cannot guarantee but I would definitely put money on soccer being the next sport that will "tackle" the problem of CTE. I don't think a penny of public tax money should go to an inherently dangerous sport that can causes life long disability and that an overwhelming majority of its participants have been shown to suffer brain damage even without symptoms of CTE in life. It's not always a problem for middle age or old age. A college quarterback in Philadelphia committed suicide. His brain was tested and he had severe CTE. So, don't think your son is safe because he's not pursuing a NFL career.
7
The exploitation of kids “big for their age “ really bothers me. The coaches and other community members who pressure these famiies have zero concern for the well- being and interests of the children. They just want bigger cannon fodder to win games and make the team look good. Nor will these others have to deal with the devastating and long-term consequences of brain injuries. Protect your kids, that what parents are supposed to do.
4
I wonder if Bill Gates ever played high school football. If he did apparently he never got hit in the head...
1
I feel very lucky, very blessed I walked away from my high school football with only a broken femur and bad knees.
It could have been worse.
2
Like any caring parent - just say "no".
1
Why would you let a coach persuade you to let your son permanently damage his brain? It’s a game, it’s just not that important.
3
Your children should not be making this decision! They are far to young to understand or even believe in the damage it could do. They probably won’t believe it could happen to them when they are 18 either, but while they are still under parental supervision older, wiser, heads should prevail. And to suggest that soccer is equally dangerous is ridiculous. Yes, there are injuries associated with soccer but not as often brain jarring concussions. It is not injuries per se that is at issue here, it is the particular type of head injury. As for being called less manly, sure it hurts but it builds character and, dare I say it, a bit of brave manliness. Succumbing to peer pressure is wimpy.
7
Skip football.
Play Ultimate Frisbee.
8
This needs to be our national sport. I grew up playing Ultimate on our local high school’s football field. Much better use, in my opinion.
Substitute smoking for football, and see how crazy these stories sound...
"My son is under pressure from a persistent coach who wants him to smoke."
"We begged him not to smoke, but ultimately let him make the decision for himself."
"We face a lot of ridicule from friends and relatives because we won't let our son smoke."
"Keeping him from smoking will be a hard sell because of the social bias in our country that real men are tough and smoke cigarettes."
12
It’s not just the risk of concussions- though that alone would be enough to dissuade me From allowing my child to play.
The culture of football corrupts everything it touches. The degradation of land grant public universities, the creepy false patriotism that infects the pro leagues, the crass oligarchs who own the teams, and the unquestioned man-worship of all of it makes football a shameful display of all that is wrong with America.
5
I’ve sworn off watching football altogether. According to a study I read last week, 60% of all NFL players have brain damage. How can we as Americans tolerate an industry with this high an injury rate?
5
My wife's brother was a high school and juco football star, but he ruined his knees. She wouldn't let our son play football till high school and although talented, he stopped after his sophomore year to focus on baseball.
We we're lucky. After I saw "Concussion" I stopped watching all levels of football, even though I was a die hard Giants fan. I don't watch boxing or MMA either. We think the Romans were barbaric to host gladiators? What are we who pay for football?
2
My 13yo son begged for football at 10yo. 10 percentile in size, quick as can be and great catcher on recess field. “Please”. No! His father had a TBI in 2010 that he recovered from. ‘Recovered’ but will never be the same. I know what an injured brain does to a person. I would never want to see that for my son anymore than I’d want them to get cancer or experience anything horrible. Please say NO! The research is correct - I know first hand.
6
I live in a town in Bergen County where not only HS but town-sponsored football are the heart and soul of its social activities. I do not get it: with everything that research has uncovered about football and the tremendous damage it causes, allowing a kid to play football is child abuse. Of course, coaches at every level are going to try to recruit kids, but that is what parents are for. Tell your kids the truth, show them the research, let them watch documentaries about it Kids are not stupid. They will get it. And even if they don't, fulfill your parental duty and keep the kids from harm. You are not a friend, parenting is not a popularity contest.Parenting is doing what is best for your kids. Playing football is not.
4
“My son didn’t ask to play football. I made him.”
Wow. How you can do that, given what we know, boggles the mind.
2
How about trying out for the varsity chess team? That would help instead of hurt.
2
@James Lange, one of the parents interviewed said that her son was on the chess team.
Guessing that she was misrepresenting the facts, in order to make herself appear to be a better parent. Of course, that wouldn't be necessary if football were such a great activity for children.
@Karen Lee
It’s possible, just like that one NFL player getting a graduate degree in math. Of course, he came to his senses and retired from professional football after just a few seasons — so that he could actually continue to do math, instead of turning his brain into cottage cheese.
1
Smoke pot or play football? One does long term brain damage and causes physical injury, the other does not.
Seems like a smart parent would be encouraging their children to toke up rather than play football.
7
CTE is not a disease that you go without until you catch it. All of these kids are suffering brain injury and developing the underlying substrate of CTE. If your child plays football, they will never be as smart or mentally stable as they would have if they had not. There is no free-ride with cumulative brain injury.
8
https://www.gq.com/story/football-and-my-dads-dementia?utm_source=pocket...
Hugh Massengill, Eugene Oregon
1
my son had a bad concussion from football, last year, months and months of headaches, light and sound sensitivity.. depression, anger,, inability to concentrate,, just feeling off,,, my kid, i gave birth to him.. he is my kid... as a parent it is up to you to make sure your kid is good now and good later.. no more football.. it is absolutely ridiculous... let our males grow up with a different sense of what it means to be male.. let's not practice war maneuvers anymore in the guise of a game.. and the coaches.. let's take a good look at them.. no more football. i love my son.
3
Any parent who has convinced themselves it's safe to let their kids play tackle football doesn't understand the CTE science.
Its not -only- concussions that cause lasting damage.
Scientists -with conclusive data- show that the accumulation of abrupt stopping and falling (tackles, blocking, contact w/the ground) causes LASTING damage.
Caring Football Parents need to educate themselves.
Watch documentaries like: https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/frontline/film/league-of-denial/
Be aware of the actual science:
https://www.npr.org/2017/07/25/539198429/study-cte-found-in-nearly-all-d...
3
Once School Districts accept liabiity (ie. no more liabiity releases by parents/ guardians) & include medical & disabiity policies, then the football 'culture' will have some respectability.
Until/ unless this occurs, parents are faced w/ a character (& IQ) test to stand up against (or be run over) by a very dangerous sport & its beneficiaires - very over paid coaching staffs & equipment purveyors.
2
With all the up to date medical news on how dangerous bangs on the head are and the C.T.E. they cause why are the football games even still being allowed to play. Both in high school and college now in September you see them every week continuing to bang their heads and get themselves ever so close to a diagnosis of C.T. E. In the past you had an excuse the medical info was not there . Now it is 2018 it is called C.T.E. and you will get it with the right amount of bangs to the head. Parents are guilty for negligence if there kid starts acting weird or gets out of control. What will take to stop football is put parents in jail when the brain damage and life long bad behavior begins. But it is too late then for their kids. I don't watch football as I hate to see grown men give themselves brain damage. I don't want to be a part of that sick culture.
3
Allowing your child to play tackle football is child abuse. Schools and coaches are also implicated.
Our national obsession with football must end--don't watch it, don't participate.
It is a violent game, similar to gladiator combat.
2
Football is temporary; the damage to his body will be permanent. As far as we know, you get one life, and you can’t buy good health.
2
When will more districts ban this dangerous, expensive and unnecessary pastime? When will more call it what it is: child abuse?
1
@David
When they are held liable for the results.
1
One mother in your article told her son his brain is his most valuable possession. If she's smart enough to say it, then he should be smart enough to hear it. Yes, as one father said, everyday we face risks, but there are risks and there are risks. For boys and girls to risk their young brains playing rough sports is foolish. And getting clobbered just to avoid being a wimp is dumb. Maybe I was a wimp for playing flag football, but I still served in the Marine Corps and was still smart enough to get out and go to college.
2
Coaches also want to win, for various reasons--competitiveness, job security, group dynamics. This means that the well being of the kids on the team may not be a first priority.
I saw this first hand. I was a volunteer, unpaid coach on various middle and high school sports teams and I, to my shame, recall sending a kid back on to the soccer field because he was one of the better players on the team. I did this even though he hadn't been given breakfast at home, and felt terrible. I talked him into it because I wanted the team to win. What a jerk I was, though I was quite aware of the dynamics of being a high school athlete, having participated in many sports. Winning is a psychological disorder. I can easily imagine a football coach sending a kid with a concussion back into a game, because he is needed.
3
My boys grew up in football crazed Texas and I was determined my boys would NOT subject their brains to this abuse. We stopped watching football on tv or going to games. If the topic ever came up, I talked about how crazy it was that players would have their brains slammed inside of their skulls for a game. I told them that I loved them too much to let them play football. They found lots of other things to do!
2
You know your son loves to play football when he wakes up on Sundays and says, “Who am I going to crush today?”
Actually, not knowing the difference between "Who" and "Whom" means that he is not spending enough time studying.
2
Just like smoking, any one who takes up professional football, given what we now know about it can do to one's gray matter, already has brain damage. Period!
1
Honestly, I find it disturbing that an 8 year old wakes up asking "who am I going to crush today."
13
I used to be the biggest Cowboy fan. I no longer can stand football and it has nothing to do with standing for the flag. Men who play football are going to get hurt. Broken legs, arms, wrists, torn ligaments, and of course, concussions. Now we know these concussions can lead to dementia. It's like watching a group of men commit suicide.
4
Just once, I would like the Times to feature a fact based article on CTE and high school sports injury instead of amplifying the myth that boys football stands alone as a source of such danger. The fact is, a ten year study concluded that girls soccer puts more athletes at risk of CTE and, further, the females have more trouble recovering from such injuries. An earlier study reported Congress a similar conclusion.
By singling out football, articles such as this one encourage parents to take up alternative sports in the mistaken belief that they are relatively free from concussion or CTE risk. In fact, soccer, baseball, and basketball all show up in comparative studies as significant exposures to impact driven brain injuries. In the case of football, there are rules, protocols, and safety equipment being employed to reduce the risk. Meanwhile, other dangerous sports do nothing because they are mistakenly believed to be safe.
Here is some information that may save young brains if taken to heart by responsible adults:
https://traumaticbraininjury.net/2017/03/24/decade-long-study-shows-fema...
6
@Hugh Wudathunket The report you cite is for girls soccer and incidences of concussions. There is a huge difference between concussions and CTE. CTE is caused not just by concussions but by accumulated sub-concussive trauma to the head/brain. Also, no one thinks that other sports are free from concussions. But rather it is the amount and frequency as compared to other sports. What's next? Defending boxing because, hey, sometimes baseball players get concussions too?!
3
@Hugh Wudathunket
Yes it’s dangerous but soccer has taken REAL steps to make the sport safer by banning and limiting headers for young kids.
https://www.ussoccer.com/about/recognize-to-recover/concussion-guidelines
Football has taken no such step.
2
I played the game during the late 1950s through the early 1960’s. During that time cage helmets replaced helmets with a bar or two across the lower face. Those cage helmets enabled the pernicious change in tackling technique. The head up shoulder tackle, which was fairly safe, gave way to the head down mid chest tackle. I was first string on a school where football was big, but I quit mid season when out new coach advocated face in the ball carrier’s chest tackling. Sure I got grief from everybody but I didn’t care. That style of ball was so dumb even an 18 year old jock could see it.
3
I was thrilled during the 1970's that my sons had no interest in playing football. At the time, we didn't know about CTE, but we did know that children get injured in this "sport."
While they played soccer, climbed on jungle gyms and took gymnastics, they were also artists and writers.
I'm proud of them and grateful they were not exposed to concussions.
1
I had coaches and parents accuse me of bad parenting when I refused to let our son play football in grade school. He is a natural athlete and his friends follow his lead. As a former medical professional I was aware of the effect of concussions in football players for almost 20 years. I took a lot of flak for standing firm on the decision. I was accused of derailing recruitment. All I wanted was for them to leave my son out of their football dreams. Seven years later, my town has had to join ranks with another town, in order to field a football team. Meanwhile we now have a great soccer program and a group of parents who are very happy that their children have been given a healthier alternative. You can fix a broken ankle, you can't fix a broken brain. It is that simple. But the fight can be difficult.
2
I am the mother of two teenage sons. When they were still very young, I realized the importance of exposing them to a wide range of male role models. I used every visit to the pediatrician, eye doctor, dentist, and orthodontist to highlight possible career paths. All of our healthcare professionals were kind, pleasant, intelligent, and cultured, and my boys grew to value those qualities. Their uncle is a police officer, and my husband is a school superintendent. Boys need to know that there are many facets to “masculinity”. They chose to run track - a sport that requires discipline, hard work, and focus - and both hope to become engineers. They watch football on television with bewildered amusement.
1
Tackle football is a beautiful sport, a fantastic spectator sport, and a vehicle for teaching many kids about honor, team work, and self-regulation. No doubt about it. It is also a sport that has the highest injury rate of major college sports. It is a sport that correlates with future health risks related to obesity. It is a sport awash in money which at the college level incentivizes a lot of bad behavior (in players, coaches, and alumns). And we now know that it is a sport that puts its players at increased risk for dementia. Not all of the above are unique to football, and it's probably unfair to single it out. CTE is undoubtedly going to show up in hockey players. Money also corrupts college basketball. Etc. That said, I personally think we've reached a point in which middle schools and high schools are being irresponsible by fielding football teams. Maybe eliminating pads and helmets would help, but I don't see that happening. Finally, it's important to remember that football is an invented thing. It hasn't always been around. Surely we can invent something as joyous and that is healthier for our kids.
2
I played football in high school....a very long time ago. My mother was very much against it. Mainly because of orthopedic injuries. We didn't know anything about CTE then. She, of course, was right. I played offensive line positions and I can still "re-live" shuddering tackles I experienced. I'm now a developmental psychologist. I can say there were no important learnings, no social or team skills, no mental toughness, no physical competencies or physical development that came through football that could not have been delivered as well or better through baseball, track, soccer, skiing, tennis, golf, swimming, cycling or basketball. Most of those became later life pursuits. All those would have been a lot safer...and just as much (or more) fun.
2
I played football from a young age thru high school, but when my son came of age I was aware of the health issues and didn’t encourage him to play football. As he got older I discussed my concerns and shared information with him about the health risks associated with the sport and the terrible toll it was taking on many pro players and their families. He understood and by then was already pursuing other sports.
1
Football gets all the attention but the risk of serious injury in other sports such as soccer is also extremely high. I’ve read that the risk of concussion in soccer is equal to that of football.
It’s time for both parents and media coverage to wake up, and look at the dangers of all contact sports. School kids imitate the play of their tv screen heroes. But it makes a lot more sense for someone being paid millions and with thousands of fans to put their body on the line each week, rather than a simple high school student.
Parents need to look at the sport their kid plays and weigh the risk vs benefit, and ditch the fingers crossed wishful thinking approach. Leagues need to show real change and put player safety first. Until then smart parents should refuse to sign the waiver.
1
Concussions increase the risk of dementia in later life. I’ve had two concussions that got me hospitalized. I was dazed and confused. I feel a bit of dread knowing I have these added risk factors for dementia in later life. The second concussion was preventable—had I worn a bike helmet and used a light on my bike. But there’s nothing I can do about it now. What’s happened has happened.
Reading the perspectives of parents who let their sons play tackle football, it’s clear that they are discounting the risks and over-weighting the benefits as they see them (e.g. we enjoy family time on the sidelines during the fall; my teenager wants to play; it’ll help my son make friends in high school). There are ways to gain those benefits that don’t put your child’s brain at risk. As someone who’s had two serious concussions, I wish I could turn back the clock and avoid them. These parents have that chance now.
1
I have three sons, Adam, 21,Donovan,19 and Connor,16. They all played football for 6 years or more. None of them are small, being 350, 210 and 195 lbs. Adam never had a concussion and is now a blacksmith. Donovan had 1 concussion from football and is now in the Navy. Connor is now in his junior year. He has had 2 concussions, but only 1 was from football. The other concussion was from wrestling. Connor plans on playing through college.
When I was in 6th grade in 1976 I started boxing. I have no idea about how many concussions I had, back then we just shook it off. I played football, wrestling and track in high school. Same thing, shake it off. I guesstimate over 30 to 40 concussions during that time. I was involved in MMA in my 30's. Plenty of head shots. In 2014 I was hit by a drunk driver and had the most severe concussion. Recovery will be life long.
So as you can my boys have a unique viewpoint on concussions. If I can limit my boys to just a few concussions in their formative years I will be fine with that.
The hard work and effort I learned when I was young was well worth the concussions I received. I don't feel I was limited by any of them. Now at 52 I am quite limited, but not from sports. It took a drunk driver hitting my stopped car at over 75 mph to do me in.
As far as we can see our boys have not had any limitations from playing football. But, they have all learned valuable social and other skills that I believe outweigh the risk.
1
This is all really sad. On the one hand the CTE knowledge is really scary. On the other hand, there is no doubt at all that playing a tough, physical-contact sport is a wonderful opportunity for boys in so many ways. Sorry, but the chess or debating teams do not provide the same benefit, the same cameraderie, the same lasting friendships.
I don't have an answer.
Somebody needs to fix the problem to find a way to enable tackle football without the concussion risk.
Right now it's unfair. It's unfair that some boys are not being allowed play and are missing out on a great opportunity. It's unfair that some of the boys who do play will suffer traumatic consequences later in life.
The answer could come from technology. Ideas that were unthinkable 10 years ago would now be easy, and in 10 years we won't even believe we didn't always have them.
For example: equip every helmet with a sensor and any player who makes contact with his helmet (with another helmet, with another part of another player's body in a tackle or a scrimmage), except maybe the inevitable (but not violent) contact with the side of the helmet during a well-executed arm-tackle, must leave the field for the next 5 plays. In this way, we train boys to play football without any helmet contact. It won't be exactly the same sport, but it will be very close - and it could be one where every boy could play with toughness and courage, without having to risk his brain.
As a father of a now 15 year old son I’ve followed this story very closely over the years. I feel he is the first group of kids to have grown up with the knowledge of the dangers of concussions in children. The results are now being seen with smaller high schools unable to field teams and numbers significantly down at larger schools.
My dad who grew up in Ireland, playing sports that might make football look tame passed away a few years back from Parkinson’s complications. As an admitted lover of anything sport (cursed with a non athletic son :) ) he felt very strongly about keeping his grandson away from football. I’ve decided to follow that advice.
3
As a freshman, my son was 6'5' and "built for football".
At the freshmen fair, the football team spotted him and followed him around, urging him to sign up to play. I finally said to one player that he was in fact not playing because of the risk of CTE. The player looked at me and said "What is CTE?" So no, not everyone is aware of the risks of this dangerous, potentially permanent brain damaging sport. It is beyond absurd that one would spend the early life of a child making sure all safety precautions are followed: seat belts, sunscreen, bike helmets, etc and then say or believe that once you hit high school football season, the equivalent of the brain impact of several minor car accidents during football practice is somehow ok? I could never live with myself if years down the road my son suffered from brain damage and I could have done something to prevent it. You only get one brain, makes sense to do all you can to protect it!
4
I played Pop Warner football at 12 years old. I played High School football as well. In college I would have played, but I was a lineman and way too small and I had wrestling instead. Get rid of the helmets altogether and make the way players play change to reflect the fact that there is no head protection, and the game will change for the better. You can't put a helmet on a kid and not have the head become a natural battering ram. Rugby has plenty of "real men" and you don't see near as many head injuries.
1
When my son decided to play football, I was fairly ignorant of the dangers that the youth can suffer from playing this sport. First, I did ask the pediatrician whether he should play. He gave his approval (something I recommend any parent.) Then he decided to play QB and, as any parent, I supported him to the point of sending him to football camps to improve his game. And the better he became a QB, I found, the most playing time he had and the most likely the opposing team would attempt to "take him out". In one game, he did suffer a concussion. Researching the topic, I decided that he needed a "safer" helmet and insisted to the coach that he would not get on the field without such headgear. I knew that, if he suffered an additional concussion, he should then stop playing. Then I found out that QBs get hit invariably the left side where the spleen is located. That meant wearing a chest protector to shield his spleen. Strangely, the better he became a QB, the more likely he would suffer an injury. ANd I found that opposing teams sought ways for their players to hit him harder or even "spear"my son (that meant for a player to use his helmet as a battery ram.). Finally, he suffered a torn shoulder that required surgery. The morning of his surgery, I could not help to see teenagers his age all waiting their turn --from shoulders to knees for the anthroscopic surgery. Many played other sports like soccer and baseball. So CTE is not the only potential injury.
2
When my son was in high school, a decade ago, I was the outlier parent who worried about the damage caused by concussions. At least one teacher told me that football was good because it built character, but my son had many opportunities to build his character. My son was big and coaches thought he was perfect for their contact sports. My son already suffered with the effects of ADHD, and struggled to prevent dehydration migraines. He diidn't need the possible ramifications of concussion on top of that. I'm not sorry I didn't permit him to play football and he never seemed to really want to anyway.
1
Adjusted for location: for parents in 'nice' places this conversation is over and football has lost. Even my more socially conservative friends are appalled at the idea of allowing their own children to play.
That's honestly the first thing that came to mind as a trend towards a bottom line that made nike support Kaepernick.
The same thing that made CVS decide that smokers weren't worth their money either.
The class problems that America keeps having extend into everything, which is both fascinating and depressing.
(I do recognize that Texas and the South are a different culture and are perhaps a little behind in this regard)
1
@Hollis What are you talking about? Are you implying that only poor people play football? The high schools that field the largest and best teams are well-to-do suburban public schools and expensive private schools in major metro areas. If you want proof look at the state rankings in your state.
35 years ago when my son was entering high school I told him I would never sign a permission slip for him to play football. Neither he nor I have ever regretted it. When I see very young kids getting all suited up to play Pop Warner football I sadly shake my head. There is so much more to life than football. At the Pop Warner age kids are much better off playing touch football without helmets or pads. Much less likely to be injured and far less likely to have a concussion.
2
My son absolutely adores running out into the middle of the state highway that runs through our town and dodging cars. And he's good at it. He is fast, accelerates quickly and can turn on a dime. He's also smart; he can read drivers' intentions better than any other kid I know. He has a sixth sense that tells him if a driver is going to try to dodge him, slam on his break, or just keep plowing through - and then reacts swiftly and appropriately. He's a joy to watch, and he just loves it. It's done so much for his confidence, his discipline and his focus - not to mention his intellect through in-depth study of driver behavior, vehicle response times, effects of weather and road conditions and other variables. And he does it in a well-regulated environment: clearly posted speed limits, well-marked lane dividers, good lighting and regular traffic patrols - never in the chaos of a mall parking lot. He's wears good shoes, shin pads and a helmet, and knows which cars likely have no air-bags, playing only with cars whose drivers are safe and well-protected.
I know some think that I shouldn't be letting my son do this - that it is too dangerous and can cause life-long physical damage. But how could I ever deprive him of something he loves, something he's so good at, and something that he is so careful about doing safely? Sorry, but I just won't be that kind of parent who holds his kid back - who shelters him from embracing life and all its challenges.
10
As my son reached school age as one of the tallest kids my Dad, a lifelong Steelers fan, started imagining his football career. As a nurse who spent years in neurological and trauma units was quick to explain that was never going to happen. I had to shut down the argument with “my kid, my rules”. Over the past decade I’ve seen my colleagues twist themselves into even more convoluted logic so their kids can play and they can keep watching football as more and more data comes out. We know it’s not just about the helmet, or the bad hits. The cost of this cognitive dissonance about football has effected other sports. My son played baseball, soccer and basketball. My high school he dropped out of all of them because the climate around youth sports has led to a system of unrealistic expectations about their kids, soaked in money, justified by the oft repeated mantra about teamwork. In my well to do Boston suburb no Tom Brady dreams are making any of these kids every play professional sports will only a slim chance of Division One college. Yet football still dominates the social fabric of high school. My son has decided too many of male athletes his age are “jerks” and he has poured his energy into other areas to learn teamwork just fine, thank you. I’m unclear if his assessment is related to head injuries in sports or parental influence. Before my Dad died this year he had a long conversation with my son about politics. He apologized about the football fight.
2
A close relative is a doctor who has worked with traumatic brain injury patients in hospitals. There is no recovery for most of these patients. Their lives are over even though they are still alive. There are many sports with lower risks of brain injury for boys who are athletic. It would be better for the boys and for their parents if they played sports other than football.
2
The coach has no interest in the health and well-being of the child. He shouldn’t interfere by tempting the child to play.
1
I played football all through high school. However my wife and I both decided we would not allow our two sons to play tackle football. There are so many other activities available such as baseball, basketball, soccer, hockey or lacrosse that do not have the same dangers of head injuries. Ironic that with all the studies that have confirmed a causal connection between head injuries and tackle football that it is the educational institutions such as high schools and colleges that actively recruit for football.
1
I was big for my age in 8th grade and I was also told I was built for football. I never liked the sport and played soccer throughout Jr High and High school. I still suffer from the ankle and wrist injuries I sustained. Good thing and found Lacrosse and played injury free through High school, college and beyond.
A mother quoted in this article:
"The first few weeks of youth football are spent just learning how to properly tackle to avoid head injury. Helmets are replaced every year. Coaches take concussion training"
If this is truly the way your youth program works you are very very lucky. Most are run by untrained volunteers in these small towns, whatever dad wants to step up. They may or may not coach the right way to prevent head injuries. I've seen helmets reconditioned year after year and still in use after more than a decade. Helmets are the most expensive piece of equipment on the field. Don't assume these things everywhere.
Given what we know, why would this even be a debate or difficult decision? The answer should be “no”. The problem is the “culture of football “.
For those parents on the fence because of their love of the game, or as a result of being steeped in the culture unthinkingly, consider whether you would encourage and applaud your child if they joined the debate team if debates engaged in as a teen were proven beyond any doubt to result in a real risk of brain damage and difficulty later in life. My guess is that the support, enthusiasm and pride of the parents and community would quickly evaporate. Why not here?
1
My parents worried about the injury risk in football and encouraged me to play other sports instead. I devoted myself to playing soccer instead and still play today, now that I am in my 30s. Soccer is not without its risks, but it's much safer than football.
Football is a great sport to watch, but the inherent violence of the sport is concerning and it can lead to life-long problems.
1
Great column and very timely. My 10 years old son wants to start using heroin. I warned him of the 99.99% chance of dying before reaching high school but a nice experienced dealer assured us he would look out for our Junior. I hope Junior makes the right decision. Otherwise I might feel guilty at his funeral.
7
Unfortunately brain damage is unrepairable and life long. Occupational and physical therapy and meds can help a bit, but CTE damage seems to get worse for ever.
Helmets protect the skull, but they do NOT protect the brain.
Brain is the consistency of pudding and sloshes around inside the skull breaking axons that connect one neuron to the next one. Axons are very very tiny and we can't reconnect them. Our brains are amazing but very breakable.
Tackle football: NO. Heading in soccer: NO. Fights in Hockey:
NO. Run, jump, throw and catch a ball, dance, balance on a beam. But do not take risks with your brain. As a physician I took care of brain damaged patients: very very difficult for the patient and their family.
3
"I trust the coach" "There is a safe way to tackle" "My son loves football - he wakes up and says "who am I going to crush today" "I love to watch football with my son but it causes some problems because we won't let him play football"
These parents are in denial about the danger of football and how they are promoting it to their children. The response to bullying (real men play tackle) is not to give in and go along.
2
Responsible neurosurgeons should publish a pamphlet that identifies the long term effects of repeated blows to the head.
That pamphlet should be signed by every parent of every kid before they are allowed to participate on a football program or team.
1
@JM, while that makes perfect sense, the article demonstrates that some parents either are unclear about the potential risks to their children's health, or do not want to know.
I'd suggest that they truly don't care; however that would be too judgmental on my part.
Fifty years ago in NYC my brother played football for his high school. He was good, fast and he made all-city, all-state and got a college scholarship. He also suffered concussions, a loss of peripheral vision, life long tinnitus and most probably though it's hard to document a decrease in intellectual capabilities.
When my son was born I decided that football was not going to be an issue. We never watched it and never talked about it. It was not a part of our family culture.
My children's health is far more important than anything else.
1
Don't underestimate the social inducements for parents to want their sons to play football. If your son is a football player in high school, you are a vicarious or active participant in the local newspaper sports coverage, the awards banquets, the homecoming pageantry, the high-fives in the grocery store from townspeople, the yearbook pagespreads, the pep rallies, the tailgate parties, etc. Coaches make big efforts to include parents in the effusive praise at public sports events. Particularly in a small town, this is a huge deal. No other activity that your child can participate in (band, debate, drama, other sports) has this kind of social payoff for parents.
1
Both of my sons play football. They have both had concussions- not during football. One had a concussion skiing, and the other had a nasty concussion playing lacrosse. I think it's great that the risk of head injuries is being taken seriously. Football is a great team sport for a lot of reasons. All sports carry risks, not just football.
1
NO-Not worth it. Injuries of all sorts. many hours wasted that could go to much more productive things. many forms of exercise more safe and more effective. Football should be stopped in public schools . The cost of football in dollars steals these from academics which is what college is supposed to be about. Paying coaches 5 million?
2
The high school that I graduated from had football from 1905 until 2017. This fall is the first year since 1904, no football. What happened?
First, even with 250 boys in grades 9 thru 12, the high school was having a difficult time getting enough boys to participate. Second, insurance to cover the medical liability for the high school football program was becoming so expensive that property tax payers were revolting. And third, attendance at games had dramatically dropped over the past 20 years as people have more options with their increasingly limit free time than to spend their Friday nights at a high school football game, and so high school football was not longer the centerpiece of the community. I really believe that it was that third part of no longer being seen as a necessary part of the community’s identity and life that really killed high school football.
2
I have two sons. They will never play tackle football. The risks are not worth it. There are so many other sports to choose from. Personally I think football needs to be abolished but I’m sure that will never happen because of the money associated with the sport.
2
I am the mother of 3 large sons and the widow of a former professional football player. My husband died at age 61 and it is the belief of everyone in the family that he suffered from dementia related to the multiple concussions he suffered. None of my sons play football – that was their choice… But I was very grateful that they did not. My sons are healthy young men and enjoy sports. The culture of “a man has to do this to become a masculine man” is outdated and dangerous for our sons. The last couple years of my husband‘s life was a nightmare… For him and for us. There are plenty of ways for kids to be fit, to learn how to play as team members and to enjoy their childhoods as they prepare for, hopefully, a healthy adulthood. We now know more about concussion and the brain then we did 40-50 years ago when my husband started playing. Parents have the control and the information. Use it!
3
Sure, let the kids play tackle football. And while we're at it, let 'em smoke pot and gobble pills and drink as much beer as they want; give 'em the keys to the car; let 'em skip school if they really want to. *Anything* but "peer pressure."
Knowing what we know, why are we even having this discussion?
2
Sorry but I must comment again. There's a theme here that perhaps kids should not be able to play until 13 or 14, but I would suggest that the dangers only increase with age. Not only do you weigh less when young, but you are also less capable of generating the higher speeds. Need I remind you of your high school physics? Force equals half mass times velocity SQUARED.
I played tackle football at 11. Does no one remember being able to sprint for 30 yards on kickoff and crash directly into the opposing player (also sprinting) and just bouncing off each other with little trauma? --and then realizing at age 15 and 30 lbs heavier that the same scenario exacts a price?
I had a deal with my son that he couldn’t play football until he was 14, like many other parents commenting on this article. The hope was that by the time he was 14 he wouldn’t want to play (wishful thinking) or better yet, the science would catch up and schools would cancel their programs.Well, he’s 14 and it’s a rite of passage at his school is to play football as a freshman. His team is full of trim 5’8” 125 pound athletic soccer and lacrosse players up against 6’2 220 lb Pop Warner youth players and at every game at least one player gets carted off the field. I will never forgive myself if he gets injured, and know we are complicit in letting him play, but when I made that “deal” when he was 8 I didn’t realize how quickly those years would pass. We are taking a risk and I don’t feel good about it.
I have an almost 15 year old son who fortunately doesn't have the desire or body to play tackle football. If that were different there is no way I'd facilitate him playing tackle football. In my opinion it's every bit as dangerous as letting him play in traffic. No other sport has the brain injury issues of football. I know some folks love it but not for a child I love with all my being.
2
Until hard shell helmets are abolished, I will neither support football nor let my child play it.
Football today reminds me of tobacco 25 years ago. They know the risks. We know the risks. (The lawyers know all this too!). Change is coming . . . One way or another. . . . Let’s hope a safer but still enjoyable sport results.
2
It is a difficult, even in some ways a heartbreaking decision for a parent to forbid their child to play contact sport. If they care about their child though, they should. Thank goodness for the brain science that is exposing the risk.
Many, many years ago, I was a schoolboy athlete. Undersized for the position I was playing, yet having a strong desire to succeed, I used brute aggression to compete. In football, especially the upper division ranks of Texas high school football, this meant using my head as a battering ram. Every practice and every game entailed subconcussive blows to the head.
Looking back, behavioral and emotional changes were apparent by my senior year in highschool. Dedicated and eager to please my coaches, and to contribute as a teammate and player, I was heedless of the damage I was doing to myself.
Even from just those six years of junior and high school football, I am convinced there was clinical traumatic brain encephalopathy. Especially in the years immediately after high school, functional deficits in memory and mood and social competencies appeared.
Young men and parents, use your brain. Use your head, and not as a battering ram. Stay away from contact sports. There are other sports, and other means to athleticism, and myriad other opportunities, in our multisport world, for conditioning and physical health. There are other ways to compete.
Football is too risky to brain health, and mental and emotional and social function.
4
Feeling of community and love for the game? Does the love for your child not prevail over these? An educated enlightened loving parent would not subject their child to the pressures of anyone, lest of all coaches, whose best interest is to the game, their own glory and of course their jobs. If less people played, they would be out of a job in 2 generations, no?
We should hear and read more from parents with kids with concussions and CTE, and their early decisions that led them to this day.
1
There are other options, sports that present less risk than football, for families to choose from. In most other sports, such as soccer, basketball, baseball and lacrosse, there are positions for athletes who aren't thoroughbreds. The "pressure" to play football is self inflicted.
2
Its a sad commentary that there are parents who would knowingly put their child's future at risk because of some comments made by coaches or friends.
2
What really strikes me after reading this is how parents react - some end up making bad decisions (in my opinion that means letting a child play a sport so likely to result in brain related issues) - because of the social pressure or stigma.
Actually looks a lot like what we are going through on the political stage - making bad decisions becuse doing the right thing is seen as weak or pandering.
1
The only reason I had cable was to watch College Football.
Two life-devastating considerations have led me, sadly, to give up my great passion. And end my cable service.
The first is the decades-long Penn State coverup, a horrifying revelation of the priorities of football: little kids' lives count for nothing in comparison with the Sacred Spectacle.
The second is CTE. I learned that I was watching gladiators, killing one another slowly rather than instantaneously.
I used to shudder in the Colosseum in Rome, thinking of the unspeakable sadism of the crowds.
Now I know that an invisible version of the Roman horror takes place each Fall Saturday in Norman, or Berkeley, or LA, or State College, or Annapolis, or Slippery Rock, or Miami, or any of all the other college towns, once so dear.
So, I know the answer for me. But, I don't know it for the mass of players, or for the tens of millions of fans.
My seventeen-year-old grandson is a star of his high school team. We talked, and he thinks he'll be ok. I haven't spoken with his mother about forbidding him to play. I'm confused with respect to the passion of others for the sport.
But the problem of CTE, and the underlying problem that The Program isn't the Main Thing, but the Only Thing, needs to be kept front and center on page one, right before our eyes, until we reach a reasonable resolution.
Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrah! Go Cal Bears! In all the sports but one...
1
I played football from 8th grade through to college. In fact, football is what got me into college.
I now have a 3 year old son; he will not be playing football.
What we now know about the brain and the seriousness of concussions is eye opening. During my years I experienced at least three concussions (that I know of).
We need to go back to the days when my grandfather was playing -- take off the face mask and let us see who will lead with their head.
1
We now understand the risks and the possibilities for lifelong mental health disabilities, both cognitive and emotional.
Bowing to the toxic peer-pressure culture that plagues high schools is completely irresponsible. Encouraging your child to play football is child abuse; actively and firmly discouraging them is a sometimes difficult but necessary responsibility of every parent.
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I think teachers and coaches should be fired if they encourage or pressure kids to play football when the child’s parents are opposed to it. Are teachers really allowed to undermine the parents’’ judgements in this way? Would you want your 10 year old or 16 year old following the coaches guidance or yours?
The coaches want the glory of a winning team, and won’t be responsible down the road if there are injuries and/or CTE.
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Any parent who actively pushes their child into football is nuts. Especially when you try to compare football to any other sport. In no other sport does a person literally bang their head against something or someone else on every play.
Now you could make an argument for non-line players, but if your son is a center (or any lineman really) and plays all through pop warner and high school, there is a high likelihood that he is gonna be a vegetable by the time he is 60.
Have you looked at a kids football helmet lately? It doesn't look much different than it did 15 years ago. There currently and probably never will be a technology that protects your brain from being banged against a hard object thousands of times over a lifetime. If you really think about it at that length of time, its common sense.
Save your kids now, while you can.
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As a community, we need to find an alternative sport to football where we can locate all the hoopla... the band, the color guard, homecoming... all the less dangerous things that we Americans love that surround this game.
Until we do that, there will not be community support for ending football.
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I cringe reading some of the parents comments. Yes there are risks to everything, but if you can eliminate some risks KNOWING that there is scientific data associated with the dangers to the brain! in this sport, how can you let them play? Yes, it may be tough to say no even if there child is begging, but that's what a responsible parent is supposed to do. I don't care how much the coaches think they're teaching "proper tackling"- there is no such thing regarding safe tackling other than just not letting them play.
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There comes a time in everyone’s life when making a decision against what one likes and wants to do that is a threat to their well being is a thoughtful, wise decision. Playing American football is one of those instances. Smoking is another instance if you need a reference as is alcoholism and recreational drug abuse.
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Football is America's most popular religion. After more than 40 years spent in higher education, I have never found one good thing to say about it. It corrupts nearly everything it comes in contact with. Have you noticed that in some states the highest paid state employee is the head football coach at that state's major university?
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@Jim Manis I wish every state employee brought the same ROI as football coaches. $8mm/year for someone whose program brings in over $100mm/year in revenue is a bargain! Just so that you and other people who comment on this site know, the salaries of football coaches who make the big bucks are not paid for by tax payers. Donors pay their salaries, not taxpayers.
This whole premise of this article is a farce. Its not about the boys playing football its about the parents trying to impress their friends and not have their so called friends talk bad about them. If you don't care about what other parents think (which if you do care you are basically acting like a high schooler again), the decision is easy. Do what you want. My 6.3 205 pound junior started on the varsity as a defensive end last year as sophomore. He plays against 300 pounds kids on a routine basis. He plays this year as a junior again at the same position. He also plays basketball and track. He will probably have 8 varsity letters by the time he is done at a large high school. Will he play in college? Of course not. He is going into the Marines. High school sports is a joke compared to going into the Marines.
This CTE concern is a farce. The rate of dementia is no higher among former high school players than it is in the general population. My mom died of dementia. She never played tackle football. My dad played four sports in the 1950's and is 83. He has no dementia. I played football for 10 years through high school. No sign whatsoever of dementia.
If you don't want your kid to play don't let them. Who gives a hoot what other parents think. My kids play sports because they want to and its fun. I told them grandpa (my dad) and I had our fun already. We don't really care if you play or not. And when it stops being fun don't play anymore.
decades ago i played high school football very badly. i was fairly big and no so fast but ok for center and linebacker. i wish i would have had the chance to try soccer instead.
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Parents have to choose between a few moments of glory and the chance of a progressive and untreatable brain disease. Seems pretty clear.
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Coaches don't have to deal with the kids 20 years later when the head injuries really take their toll. Their looking at new players every 4 years.
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@Nick
I played a sport other than football in college and I constantly dealt with shoulder pain. This was Division 3 so not that intense.
My coach (this was around 2002) told me to just take 4 aspirin every 4 hours. I refused. If it hurt, I took time off.
Best decision I ever made. I still get slight shoulder pain today when I exercise, but it's manageable, and I know others who listened and tore their bodies apart in college, relying on painkillers, and they still feel the effects today.
It's even worse when it's your brain.
2
I played football through HS and college. But knowing what we know now the game has to change. Barefoot of flat bottomed shoes so the feet slip and spare the knees, no pads so the players don't hit so hard. No helmets so they don't put their head in harm's way. And tackle is still violent. The pros could be proactive and move in that direction. Can you imagine what a plus for the sport it would be? The rest would follow.
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@AS The helmet and pad thing is a huge element. Notice how there are far fewer problems in rugby, where they don't wear these things. (Also, rugby doesn't feature many players at 300lbs+).
I care for an Alzheimer's sufferer. Do all you can to protect your brain. Dementia is cruel.
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I played football from 6th grade through college at a Division III program. It was something that I just loved to play from the first time I joined a team.
The positive side of playing had nothing to do with the big crowds or getting my name in the paper. It was a tremendous way to push myself from the mental, emotional, and physical perspectives that no other sport I found could do. The preparation I learned I still use to this day. The teamwork is also a great part of the game too. I still am close friends with many of my old high school and college teammates all these years later.
The negative side is that I had numerous concussions (2 that needed medical attention and continually had my "bell rung" after big tackles that I never told my coaches about.) I do not believe I have been affected in my adult life from these head injuries but I do worry.
The other thing for parents to consider is that there is no "safe way" to play football. It's a high speed, chaotic game where you need to throw your body around to be a lineman or linebacker. As much as coaches try to keep the head out of blocking and tackling, it's impossible to play "safe" and still be good. As much as the NFL tries to promote safety, in reality there is no way to keep the sport safe if tackling is still part of the game.
I am proud of my time playing but totally understand if parents do not think the long-term health risk is worth the short-term experience of playing football.
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There are a lot of other team sports that don’t run a high risk of permanent brain damage. Most countries in the world do just fine without football.
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There is risk in everything one mother points out and that is true. But it is also true that you can eliminate unneeded proven risks easily and a diversion, a sport, is exactly that. The brains of kids are developing and they are vulnerable to damaged. This is not speculation but now proven fact. Why would any parent allow their child to play a sport that results in impact after impact on the brain and body? It's the subconcussive impacts that lead to CTE. And why do our public educational systems engage in a sport where medical science has said will severely impact a child's brain development? Culture is one reason this article touches on, but it is also money. The Times should research the money youth football generates for public schools and the power behind this.
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It is too obvious for words. Tackle football should be abolished. Flag football is a good game. Also, the purpose of athletics is supposed to be the development of character, but tackle football often develops bad character. It supports the macho culture that values aggression and domination of opponents. Again, too obvious for words. I cannot believe that responsible parents don't see the facts.
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It's tough when your kid is begging to play tackle for years but I am resolved and will not put my most precious treasure in the way of such irreversible harm. My son, 13, plays flag football and I have not been convinced that any age of tackle is safe.
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Bravo. That is what being a parent is all about: doing what is right even if your decision is not popular. Parenting is not a popularity contest.
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@Elizabeth Kenney good for you!! i agree. i have a son who was totally enamored with the game, played and then incurred a bad concussion last year (at 15).. he is my kid.. no more football, the concussion was absolutely horrible to go through, to see my kid go through that.. awful,, he is still enamored and still pushes to be allowed to play, after all that he went through,,, i cannot let him play,, stay strong!
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It is child abuse to permit boys to play concussion ball. Trusting a youth coach to teach “proper tackling” or relying on a youth helmet for protection are nonsense. There is no “proper” way to repeatedly collide with other kids and avoid bouncing brains inside skulls. The faster and bigger the kid, the more brain trauma there is on every hit.
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@Joe B.
YES, it is child abuse.
Parents who do it should be prosecuted.