A study conducted in the top division of Swedish football and published by the prestigious journal The Lancet Public Health shows that elite footballers are 1.5 times more likely to develop neurodegenerative diseases such as dementia or Alzheimer’s than the rest of the population. The situation is different with the goalkeepers, who head significantly less than their field colleagues. The sample includes 6,007 footballers who played in the Scandinavian national league between 1924 and 2019.
Another conclusion of the publication is that the risk of developing diseases that affect motor neurons (such as ALS, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis) does not increase. And with Parkinson’s, the risk is lower compared to the rest of the population. Among the 6,007 Swedish Premier League male soccer players studied, 9% (537) were diagnosed with a neurodegenerative disease, while controls in the rest of the population detected 6% (3,485 of 56,168). Diagnosed goalkeepers were 38 out of 510, 7.5%.
That responds to a theory, according to Peter Ueda, an assistant professor at Karolinska Institutet who took part in the study. “It has been hypothesized that repeated minor head injuries caused by head injuries are the reason soccer players are at higher risk, and it may be that the differential risk of neurodegenerative diseases between field soccer players and goalkeepers supports this theory . This is also credited to SMC by David Curtis, Honorary Professor at UCL Genetics Institute. “This study replicates previous findings that playing professional football is associated with a significantly increased risk of dementia. It seems highly plausible that repetitive heading during practice and play causes brain damage that over time can lead to dementia. The fact that it does not increase the risk for goalkeepers who rarely head the ball supports this hypothesis.”
Another study carried out in Scotland in 2019 with the support of the English FA and players’ union came to a similar conclusion. Research in this case suggested that soccer players (no distinction was made between goalkeepers and outfield players) had a 3.5 times greater risk of developing neurodegenerative diseases. It is precisely for this reason that some federations have taken measures to reduce headbutts in training at younger age groups. They did it, for example, the English, Scottish and Northern Ireland associations (it is forbidden to hit or behead anyone under the age of 12). The American was also a pioneer, becoming the first to ban headbutts in training for children under the age of 10 in 2015 and recommending that they be restricted to those between the ages of 11 and 13.
In England and the United States, children under the age of 12 are not allowed to head the ball. Kinzie Riehm (Getty Images)
Last August, the International Board (IFAB) approved a testing protocol – mandatory compliance – prohibiting “deliberate headers” in all competitions and matches in the U12 and under categories. Failure to comply with the rule will result in a foul penalty for the opposing team. The English FA and the United States are participating in the pilot, which will send the data collected to the IFAB. To participate, all you need to do is get permission from the IFAB and commit to submitting the data and the appropriate scores.
The study, conducted in Sweden, did not observe a significant increase in the risk for gamers to develop diseases such as ALS, 0.3% (14 out of 5,497) compared to the general population, 0.2% (100 out of 56,168). And as for Parkinson’s, football players have a lower risk than the general population, 1% versus 1.3%. All-cause mortality was slightly lower in soccer players compared to the study control group. (40% vs. 42%).
Björn Pasternak, study leader at Karolinska Institutet, puts it this way: “The lower all-cause mortality we observed in football players suggests that their general health was better than that of the general population, probably because playing football kept them in good physical shape get soccer frequently. Physical activity is associated with a lower risk of dementia, so it could be hypothesized that the potential risks of headbutts are somewhat offset by good physical fitness. Good physical condition can also be the reason for the lower risk of Parkinson’s.”
It is signed by Gill Livingston, Professor of Elderly Psychiatry at University College London: “It is important to remember that people who play football live longer than the people they are compared to. People are afraid of developing dementia: these results highlight ways we can reduce it, not just for footballers. We must act to protect people’s minds and brains and keep exercising.”
The authors, on the other hand, examined some of the limitations of their study. Neurodegenerative diseases, for example, often develop over the years, and most of the players in the study who were old enough to develop one of these diseases were playing top-flight soccer in the mid-20th century. Since then, according to the authors, “football has changed in many ways that may impact the risk of neurodegenerative diseases.”
And they name changing the balls (from leather to synthetics, which don’t absorb water and don’t get heavier like they used to), the type of training – more rigorous and professional – or changing the style of play associated with less head trauma could do that have reduced risk. On the other hand, they point out, the risk may be higher in football players who now train and play more intensively from an early age. Hence the measures taken by some associations, following the warning promoted by various studies, to prevent children under 12 from nodding.
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