Soccer Concussion Essay

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Soccer is the most popular and fast growing sport worldwide. Comparable to many other sports, soccer carries an intrinsic risk of injuries, including brain injuries and concussion. Also, soccer is unique in the use of heading, and heading a soccer ball is the heart of soccer world. While sports such as American football, ice hockey, and boxing get most of the attention when it comes to brain damage, in which repeated loss of consciousness often occur; that could lead to serious injuries such as, cognitive dysfunction, traumatic brain injury, and many others. In the same way, Soccer is an intense physical sport in which head is as important as the use of the foot. But since, researchers has not linked heading to concussions, players, coaches, …show more content…

No one grumbles. It 's all part of the game. But then there is the serious body crunching; the knock to the head, elbow to the ear, torsos and heads colliding at full tilt, and tackles that bring players thudding into the earth, and the last and the very less acknowledged in today world is heading heavy leather soccer balls. The result, more often than recognized, is the concussion, or mild traumatic brain injury. It can occur without any actual contact to the head. It is the sudden acceleration or deceleration that can cause the brain to ricochet inside the skull. While the impact can seriously affect cognition, it is an injury that is far more difficult to see and diagnose than torn ligaments or an open cut. Even with a CAT scan there will usually be no visible bleeding or damage to the brain. To support, in the article, “Clear Heads Needed on Concussion in Sport,” Catherine Norwood stated, a soccer player by named Jeff Astle died in 2002, aged 59. At age 37, Jeff retired from soccer, after an 18-year professional career, “included national representative selection five times,” his skill as a header of the ball was widely acknowledged. However, Jeff was reported to have suffered cognitive issues dating back five years before his death. Also, Jeff mentioned that, “the coroner ruled his death was …show more content…

Yes, that’s one way to go, but by doing so it would be disrespect to the game because we are limiting the ways one can play the game. From free kicks to corner kicks, players need headers to score wonderful goals. Taking away the heading would be making the game not fun anymore. Instead, players should be trained on proper header techniques, especially youth and girls. Being a soccer player myself, I have observed when girls go for headers they often close their eyes. By closing the eyes, the player is not only putting him/her in danger but the other players too. Also, players under the age of 14 should be banned for the use of the head as their brain is under developing process, and they have more risk compare to older and experienced players.
In conclusion, I am not suggesting that headers must be outlawed from the game. But through science and little bit of common sense one can assume that its certain that it is not a good idea to practice heading over and over, and over. The point of this essay is not to make people stop playing soccer, but the point is to make more people realize the header situation, especially parents of young

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