Football, America’s (most dangerous) Sport Football has been known as “America’s sport” for many years, as wells as America’s most popular sport. However over the years doctors and researchers have found data that has shown a significant increase in football related injuries such as concussions, spinal injuries, ACL injuries, etc. Why are football injuries increasing when some might think they should be decreasing due to more advanced protection equipment? Although players wear layers upon layers of padding, football still remains as one of America’s most dangerous sports. There should be an effort to lower the number of injuries due to football by decreasing the amount of tackles allowed in practice and also making sure that the football …show more content…
The view of pediatricians is in agreement to the fact that football is becoming. Over the years head and neck injuries have escalated in the football world. This has caused physicians to propose the idea reducing contact during practice, the postponement of the age at which tackling is allowed, and even going as far as to removing the sport from high schools. Tackling has led to many concussions as well as cervical spine injuries. Michael mentions “This culture has to change to one that protects the head for both the tackler and those players being tackled”. The doctors are aiming this towards the culture now and making it more of a culture problem rather than just a problem for the coaches and athletes. Some have fought that the change in the design of the helmet might help reduce head injuries however some studies have shown that it might not change the number significantly because repetitive blows to the head will cause damage no matter how much protective equipment is used. Another view from some doctors furthers the thought that football injuries are very serious and should be taken seriously due to the damaging long …show more content…
These professional economist give an insight on just what exactly might happen economically and socially. Grier and Cowen predict that the downfall of football will most likely start with lawsuits. Lawsuits due to injuries and suicidal deaths which are thought to be derived from the player suffering from CTE. The downfall of the sport would over a decade to occur it is simply impossible for this to be an overnight affect because this sport is far too popular and widespread. They give you a hypothetical, very visual outline of just how this downfall might go about, finally resulting in the death of the popularity of football. From lawsuits starting it off, to schools taking it away, money funding the sport would slowly fade away and companies would stop sponsoring the NFL, and the NFL would have less talented player due to the lack of football at the lower levels. Grier and Cowen are basically saying it would be a nasty domino effect. They stress how it goes so much further than the stadium and team losing money, they even discuss how this could affect the towns where the teams are located. They mention how this could affect bars, and local restaurants near the stadium. However “If the Jets and Giants go, New York still has numerous other pro sports teams, Broadway, high-end shopping, skyscrapers,
America’s newfound favorite pastime, football, came from a bizarre chain of events. Football started when a soccer player got fed up with just kicking the ball, so he picked up the ball and ran to the goal. His actions of picking up the ball and running with it fathered a new European sport, rugby, which was soon brought over to American shores, and was altered slightly, the shape of the ball and a few other small rules. The sport became organized into a league and produced the NFL(National Football League). The NFL had a slow beginning, but has picked up popularity, currently having a 9 billion dollar yearly revenue. Playing football comes with great costs, including physical and mental health deterioration, plus the amount of time spent prepping before game day. Which can pose several questions, “Why suffer for a game, Is it worth the money? Is it worth the fame? How great is the cost?” I believe that football, should have stricter regulations for the treatment of injuries, along with informing players of just how devastating a concussion can be, along with the other major injuries that commonly occur while playing football.
In the article “Should Kids Play Football” from the Scholastic Scope on February 2015, writer Jennifer Shotz discusses both issues of the benefits and dangers of playing American football. For example, Jennifer Shots mentioned that tens of thousands of young football players get concussions every year. She states that most players return to the game after they are healed but some never return because their concussion was too severe to their health. On the other hand, the writer also discusses how football isn't the only sport that encounters concussions. The rules of football are always changing and each new rule provides a safer way to play the game. For example, the writer notes that Pop Warner has reduced the amount of practice time dedicated
Are young children putting their health and even their lives at risk if they partake in the sport of football? Some claim that the American sport is far too dangerous and the risk of concussions and injuries far outway the pros of the physical sport, while others insist that technological improvements and new regulations have made the sport safer. Jonathan Zimmerman, a professor of history and education at New York University, argues in his paper, “We Must Stop Risking the Health of Young Football Players,” that football is a sport that is too dangerous for the youth. He states his belief that technological improvements in helmets and changes in the rules of the sport have had little effect on reducing injuries and that nothing has worked.
American football is full of exciting competition, but do we realize the danger! Helmet safety in football remains an immense problem as the sport accounts for the highest incidence of concussions. Since leather football helmets, the technology for safer helmets has improved drastically and continue to improve. The development of newly designed helmets and technology has lowered the risk of head injuries for players. Furthermore, improvements in helmet testing methods have led to better understanding head injuries and the protectiveness of the helmet. In respect, football helmet safety still remains a challenge, such as a necessity of a proper categorization system to rank helmets and regulations to improve helmet safety. Regardless, standards and regulations attempt to address helmet safety through government intervention and a proper measuring system for football helmets. Despite the cultural perception of football, measures are taken to ensure safety, such as the reforms and education with regards to playing safer football. I intend to address the technological advances and regulation of football towards the discussion of helmet safety. Therefore the aggresivity in football’s culture should embrace stronger helmet standards and regulation that are promoted through improved testing methods and innovations because of the need to prevent further dangerous head injuries, especially concussions.
In Daniel Flynn’s essay “Football Does a Body Good,” he states his point of view on football and the way people should see it. Football is a dangerous sport that has caused many types of head injuries concussions and other health problems throughout the years. This popular sport has caused many players to develop diseases later on in life, such as Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy, also known as CTE, Alzheimer 's, and Dementia. One of the NFL’s most pressing issues is concussions, which can have life-changing health effects on the football players.
Children who are active recklessly engage in activities where injuries can occur. Nobody can predict when or how seriously anybody will get injured during an activity, however, the risks of children playing tackle football is prevalent where the dangers are imminent. The game of tackle football on a youth level is dangerous for children since they are developing physically and mentally. According to an article from The Atlantic, “America’s most dangerous football is in the peewee leagues, not the National Football League” (Barra, 2013). According to a journal article, “sports injuries account for approximately 23% of pediatric emergency department injury related visits” (Podberesky, Unsell & Anton, 2009). “Of these sports injury-related
Stats for the football leagues are a big deal for fans. Fans are obsessed with numbers its a big deal for the fans. In 2001 there were 150,000 athletes that were injured at the age of nineteen and younger. In 2009 there were 250,000 injured athletes at the age of nineteen and younger. There is a 6.3 per 1,000 incidence a college player will suffer a concussion while a high school athlete has a 11.2 per 1,000. Risk of concussions in football is high and equipment should continue to improve, but rules should stay the same in order for the game to remain
The brute force of the game is what draws millions of people around to the world to come and watch. However, what millions of Americans don't see if the consequences of what makes the game how great it is today, the hits. With players getting bigger faster and stronger it only leaves players in more danger of getting injured. Concussions are one of the most common injuries among NFL players mainly because of the constant contact, and how the design of the helmet is to protect against major head injuries, not concussions. CTE is common in many NFL players, and most former NFL players. A study by the national institute for Occupational safety and health found that, “the brain tissue of 59 of 62 deceased former NFL players tested positive for CTE” also when studying, “the causes of death of 3,439 former NFL players concluded they were three times as likely as the general population to die from degenerative brain diseases,such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's”(Karaim). However there has been remarkable facts on how CTE has been found in NFL players more commonly than any other sport the NFL refuses to acknowledge that there is any correlation between player who played professional football and CTE. Because of this direct correlation of football and CTE many players are unable to work of fully function after their career as a professional
For example, “The N.F.L., which long denied that there was any link between the game and brain damage, has in recent years been promoting what it considers safer tackling techniques aimed at reducing head-to-head collisions” (Larned, CNN). This is important because it helps you understand the action being taken to reduce head to head contact in effort to reduce concussions in football at all ages. This shows that the more we study tackles and new techniques, the more we are able to take concussions out of football. In addition, Victoria Larned wrote, “It suggests that participants weigh potential health risks against the recreation benefits of proper tackling.” This shows that, in fact, many people are aware of the benefits gained by proper tackling technique. If kids are introduced to proper tackling techniques, the game of football becomes safer for both the tackler and the ball carrier. Teaching kids proper tackling will help reduce the amount of head and neck injuries in
One of the biggest controversial topics going on today is should children still be aloud to play football, knowing what we know about serious injuries? The article that I chose ( “Don’t Let Kids play football”) is about the consequences that could occur playing such a contact sport. The debate is that some people believe that football teaches important life lessons and others believe that it can cause serious life changing injuries.
Since football’s inception, it has been considered a manly sport. Young boys have been encouraged by their parents to participate in the game. For many boys, it is considered a rite of passage. However, football is a dangerous sport. A study conducted by the Center for Injury Research and Policy found, “an estimated 5.25 million football-related injuries among children and adolescents between 6 and 17 years of age were treated in U.S. emergency departments between 1990 and 2007. The annual number of football-related injuries increased 27 percent during the 18-year study period, jumping from 274,094 in 1990 to 346,772 in 2007” (Nation 201). These reported injuries include sprains and strains, broken bones, cracked ribs, torn ligaments, and concussions. A concussion usually happens when a player takes a hard hit to the head or is knocked unconscious on the playing field, and if not diagnosed and treated quickly, a concussion can result in death.
Football may in fact be a worldwide fad, but when will people ever realize that the lasting affects that football leaves on people is a dangerous thing? Nothing about the game of football will ever make up for the lifelong negative realities that come with playing the dangerous sport. Unfortunately, people do not seem to care about those negative things, because the love of football is unconditional. Will football ever be safe? Even though that question may never be answered, and the problems with football may never be solved, people will still continue to love and play the game, regardless of what may come. The only hope is that something will happen, and the excessive injury, trauma, and death will come to a complete halt.
Sports affect major institutions of society, including the mass media, politics, religion, education, and family. The Super Bowl gathers thousands of viewer’s attention, including those who do not usually watch the regular season games. Football is by all means an American sport. Since the day a baby is born in America, whether it be a boy or a girl, one of the first words they learn to say is ball, and after a few months they add the word foot in front of the word ball, and by the time you know it your baby boy is playing football, and your little girl is cheering “Go Steeler’s go!” and without intention their cultural identity starts.
Many reasons for this big change in sports related head injuries, mostly has to do with the protective equipment used and the regulation...
Football isn’t even the most dangerous contact sport that you could play. Other high school sports have recorded just as much, or even more concussions than football. In an article on WebMD.com Robert Preidt writes that, “Between 2010 and 2015, the concussion rate was higher in girls' soccer than in boys' football, the findings showed. During the 2014-2015 school year, concussions were more common in girls' soccer than in any other sport in the study.” Despite being viewed as one of the most dangerous sports, football does not even have the largest rate of concussions or the most serious concussions. In fact, in another study on Fox Sports.com, soccer was seen to be responsible for more of the serious concussions. Concussion numbers can be dropped with attentiveness and responsibility as kids play the game of football. Most concussions in youth football are a result of the player being irresponsible or intentionally violent while they play. But, new rules are in place that diminish this style of play. The amount of concussions can be reduced, and organizations are working on making football a safer game to play. In an article on the New York Times Marvin Washington, a former NFL player, says, “I know this is contrary to public opinion, but the game of football is safer than it has ever been, and is evolving into an even safer game.” The safety of football players at all