I am a Neuroradiologist. You are being a derelict parent if you allow your kids to play football or any sport that can result in a concussion/being knocked out. There is a lot of research coming out right now indicating that brains are much more easily injured than previously thought. A concussion was previously considered a reversible injury. It is now considered to be an indicator that at least some neurologic tissue has been damaged. Advanced imaging studies show changes in white matter volume, metabolic changes, and even microhemorrhages. Neurologic tissue does not regenerate the way an injured muscle or a broken bone does. Most neurologic tissue damage is irreversible. This is very unfortunate, because I, like many people really enjoy watching American Football, boxing, and MMA.
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Norge Jogger wrote:
Norwegian here. Why do American "men" encourage their children to play such a barbaric sport that involves participants getting tackled, injured and suffering brain trauma? Is this really how Americans nurture their children?Its only a scosh worse (if at all) than hockey and lacrosse. Go watch a high level HS lacrosse game or hockey game. Most football payers are more or less hugging on the O and D line, its only the big hits across the middle--receivers, LBs, DBs. No different than hockey.
It's a mixed bag, more injuries overall in boys football, but more concussions in girls soccer (!!), more surgeries in wrestling, girls BBall and boys baseball... So pick your poison.
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Man Moth wrote:
RunRagged wrote:
But the risk of sustaining serious head, neck and brain injuries from hits to the head with soccer balls, using your head to hit soccer balls, is markedly different depending on your sex.
Female players in girls’ and women’s soccer suffer serious head, neck and brain injuries from contact with the ball at significantly higher rates than male players do in boys’ and men’s soccer. I believe the rate is 2.5-3 times higher.
If you compare the numbers of concussions in American boys' HS tackle football to the numbers of concussion in American girls' HS soccer each year, and factor them against the disparate numbers of students who play these two popular American HS sports, I think you'll find that American girls' HS soccer has a higher rate of serious head inury than American boys' HS tackle football.
Boys’ tackle football accounts for nearly 40% of total concussions incurred in American HS sports each year, whilst girls’ soccer accounts for 20%. But around 2.5 times more boys play HS tackle football than girls play HS soccer.
The most recent school year I can find stats for is 2018-2019. That year, a little over 1 million male students in the US played HS tackle football, and they suffered a total of 99,036 concussions in games against other teams and practice with their own teams.
The same year, a little under 384,000 female students in the US played HS girls’ soccer, and they suffered a total of 48,402 concussions in games against other teams and practice with their own teams.
Sure, that's one type of injury (though not all concussions are made equal).
I'm yet to see someone break their spine in a game of soccer though.
cheerleading..more spine injuries.
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bigmig19 wrote:
Norge Jogger wrote:
Norwegian here. Why do American "men" encourage their children to play such a barbaric sport that involves participants getting tackled, injured and suffering brain trauma? Is this really how Americans nurture their children?Its only a scosh worse (if at all) than hockey and lacrosse. Go watch a high level HS lacrosse game or hockey game. Most football payers are more or less hugging on the O and D line, its only the big hits across the middle--receivers, LBs, DBs. No different than hockey.
It's a mixed bag, more injuries overall in boys football, but more concussions in girls soccer (!!), more surgeries in wrestling, girls BBall and boys baseball... So pick your poison.
The guys on the O and D line are some of the worst off other than running backs because of the repeated collisions on every single play.
They're not gonna get the major concussions but the cumulative brain damage and sheer amount of jostling the brain around is incomparable to hockey or lacrosse where major contact is way less frequent.
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Many of us are not allowing it anyway and I will never let my kid play. Numbers are way down.
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Drrads wrote:
I am a Neuroradiologist. You are being a derelict parent if you allow your kids to play football or any sport that can result in a concussion/being knocked out. There is a lot of research coming out right now indicating that brains are much more easily injured than previously thought. A concussion was previously considered a reversible injury. It is now considered to be an indicator that at least some neurologic tissue has been damaged. Advanced imaging studies show changes in white matter volume, metabolic changes, and even microhemorrhages. Neurologic tissue does not regenerate the way an injured muscle or a broken bone does. Most neurologic tissue damage is irreversible. This is very unfortunate, because I, like many people really enjoy watching American Football, boxing, and MMA.
What a ridiculous post.
1) So many people incorrectly think the point of life is to live as long as possible.
2) So kids shouldn't play soccer, either? Do you want to ban headers from soccer?
3) I know damn well my wife doesn't want our son playing football and I didn't play it either. But if he asked me to play it in HS, I"d let him do it. It's my understanding they barely tackle in practice. Can't we figure out a way to wear those super big helmets and what not?
I'd much rather have something he was passionate about and motivated to do than nothing.
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Part of the problem in the US is football is almost like and falls in line with the religious folk. That's why it is so big in the south as pee-wees and on into high school. It is driven by the dad's who suffer from toxic masculinity and feel like their son(s) will be a tough guy, just like them. No nancy-boys in Texas!
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I’m Australian and if I have a son I won’t let him play football of any code (except maybe soccer). We know too much now about the damage it does. One of my dad’s best friends played rugby league up to the international level. He’s just turned 60 and has severe dementia. I would imagine American football would be just as bad if not worse because of the direct head hits. Helmets do nothing to stop the brain moving around in the skull.
I think it’s important for kids to take risks and even get hurt occasionally, but throwing them into something with almost guaranteed brain damage is a bad idea.
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rojo wrote:
Drrads wrote:
I am a Neuroradiologist. You are being a derelict parent if you allow your kids to play football or any sport that can result in a concussion/being knocked out. There is a lot of research coming out right now indicating that brains are much more easily injured than previously thought. A concussion was previously considered a reversible injury. It is now considered to be an indicator that at least some neurologic tissue has been damaged. Advanced imaging studies show changes in white matter volume, metabolic changes, and even microhemorrhages. Neurologic tissue does not regenerate the way an injured muscle or a broken bone does. Most neurologic tissue damage is irreversible. This is very unfortunate, because I, like many people really enjoy watching American Football, boxing, and MMA.
What a ridiculous post.
1) So many people incorrectly think the point of life is to live as long as possible.
2) So kids shouldn't play soccer, either? Do you want to ban headers from soccer?
3) I know damn well my wife doesn't want our son playing football and I didn't play it either. But if he asked me to play it in HS, I"d let him do it. It's my understanding they barely tackle in practice. Can't we figure out a way to wear those super big helmets and what not?
I'd much rather have something he was passionate about and motivated to do than nothing.
Not everyone needs a good brain anyways. Sometimes the dumber you are, the better you will become.
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Because no son of mine is going to be flopping on a soccer field wailing in pain after barely being touched
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For the last several years I have researched the Nordic culture because the Scandinavian countries lead the metrics in the happiness index and children's education. These are alternative metrics to GDP. In these areas, they are superior to the US. So, it is possible that Americans can learn something from them. The US leads in GDP, but what does that actually mean? The Exxon Valdez oil spill added billions of dollars to our GDP due to the clean up. Their way of thinking could also help Americans better understand Jakob's situation.
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Kids who get stopped from playing tackle football will only get skateboards, snowboards or mountain bikes and tempt brain damage that way instead.
Don't tell me Norwegians aren't into downhill skiing, ski jumping and all that crazy stuff44 -
Bingo. There's alot more opportunities.
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Do I go with the Medical Doctor or the Cornell grad (allegedly) who can barely type in English?
🤔🤔🤔🤔🤔🤔
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You're on a message board asking this question to a bunch of Americans whose fathers mostly didn't let them play tackle football....
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Norge Jogger wrote:
Norwegian here. Why do American "men" encourage their children to play such a barbaric sport that involves participants getting tackled, injured and suffering brain trauma? Is this really how Americans nurture their children?Both HRE and samcallan mentioned rugby, popular around the western world, and the perfect QED for this silly 0/10 OP. Why do European men encourage their children to play such a barbaric blah blah blah?
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Hate to break it to yall but youth football the hits aren’t hard enough to injury you anyway. Middle school and high school it ramps up. Are you not going to let your kid play if they really want to? Might as well never take the training wheels off then
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rojo wrote:
Drrads wrote:
I am a Neuroradiologist. You are being a derelict parent if you allow your kids to play football or any sport that can result in a concussion/being knocked out. There is a lot of research coming out right now indicating that brains are much more easily injured than previously thought. A concussion was previously considered a reversible injury. It is now considered to be an indicator that at least some neurologic tissue has been damaged. Advanced imaging studies show changes in white matter volume, metabolic changes, and even microhemorrhages. Neurologic tissue does not regenerate the way an injured muscle or a broken bone does. Most neurologic tissue damage is irreversible. This is very unfortunate, because I, like many people really enjoy watching American Football, boxing, and MMA.
What a ridiculous post.
1) So many people incorrectly think the point of life is to live as long as possible.
2) So kids shouldn't play soccer, either? Do you want to ban headers from soccer?
3) I know damn well my wife doesn't want our son playing football and I didn't play it either. But if he asked me to play it in HS, I"d let him do it. It's my understanding they barely tackle in practice. Can't we figure out a way to wear those super big helmets and what not?
I'd much rather have something he was passionate about and motivated to do than nothing.
My kid's league has banned heading the ball so yes.
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Norge Jogger wrote:
Norwegian here. Why do American "men" encourage their children to play such a barbaric sport that involves participants getting tackled, injured and suffering brain trauma? Is this really how Americans nurture their children?I did not allow that, and I am American, so your theory sucks. Try considering that not every citizen of a country is identical, it will help you to talk with other humans.
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