Concussions In The NFL

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Recommended: The Impact Of Concussions On NFL Players

How would you like to have a severe, irreversible brain damage in your early to late twenties? This has been happening to football players in the NFL for the past 50 years. The brain damage, caused by sustaining too many concussions, can lead to early-onset dementia, severe depression, and CTE (Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy). CTE is the main long-term concern linked to repeated concussions. A natural forming protein, known as Tau protein, forms into triangle masses on the brain which causes depression, memory loss, confusion, impaired judgment, impulse control problems, aggression, and progressive dementia (What is CTE). There is no way to make the game of football 100 percent safe, but by implementing new rules, regulations, and improving and updating safety equipment, the NFL can lower the risk of players getting concussions and the overall long-term risk of brain damage.
A concussion is a type of Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) that causes an alteration in the athlete’s brain function and their state of mind. A concussion is caused by an impact or blow to the head or body, which within milliseconds, the brain smashes against the skull causing damage to the brain cells (McCrory 1-12). Concussions are becoming the most significant problem in football today. It’s certainly not uncommon to see them. The men playing in the NFL now are so called genetic freaks. They are not just your average man with pads on. These football players are wired and programmed to be as physical as they can while tackling (Kruse). More or less, these are super athletes playing the game, wanting to rip each other’s heads off. After all, that’s what they’re getting paid to do and what the fans pay big money to see. The human brain wasn’t designed to wit...

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...n, Kimberly G. "American Medical Society for Sports Medicine Position Statement: Concussion in Sport." British Journal F Sports Medicine 47.1 (2013): 15-26. EBSCOhost. Web. 2 Mar. 2014.

King, Peter. "Concussions." Sports Illustrated 113.16 (2010): 34-40. EBSCOhost. Web. 16 Feb. 2014.

Kruse, Zach. "NFL." Bleacher Report. N.p., 11 May 2012. Web. 16 Feb. 2014.

McCrory, Paul. "The 4th International Conference on Concussion." British Journal Of Sports Medicine 41.5 (2013): 1-12. EBSCOhost. Web. 4 Mar. 2014.

Solomon, Jon. "Alabama." Al.com. N.p., 4 Jan. 2013. Web. 22 Feb. 2014.

What Is CTE. "What Is CTE? » Center for the Study of Traumatic Encephalopathy | Boston University." Center for the Study of Traumatic Encephalopathy RSS. N.p., Apr. 2009. Web. 24 Feb. 2014.

X2Impact Technology – Head Injury Monitoring Systems." X2 BIOSYSTEMS. N.p., n.d. Web. 26 Mar. 2014.

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