Shocking? Dementia Rate Higher Among NFL Players

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Who'da thunk?

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Trump’s Tariffs Might Stick Around. What Should We Buy Now?
Trump’s Tariffs Might Stick Around. What Should We Buy Now?

A study commissioned by the NFL has found Alzheimer's Disease and other memory-related illness occurred more frequently among ex-players, as much as 19 times the national average for men between the ages of 30-49.ย  While the league has long denied there was any reliable correlation between the sport and memory-lossโ€”and, in fact, stop short of endorsing the findings of this very studyโ€”it is the closest thing to an admission that there may be some correlation between diminished cognitive function and the violence of the sport. From The New York Times:

The findings could ring loud at the youth and college levels, which often take cues from the N.F.L. on safety policies and whose players emulate the pros. Hundreds of on-field concussions are sustained at every level each week, with many going undiagnosed and untreated.

A detailed summary of the N.F.L. study, which was conducted by the University of Michiganโ€™s Institute for Social Research, was distributed to league officials this month.

The study has not been peer-reviewed, but the findings fall into step with several recent independent studies regarding N.F.L. players and the effects of their occupational head injuries.

โ€œThis is a game-changer โ€” the whole debate, the ballโ€™s now in the N.F.L.โ€™s court,โ€ said Dr. Julian Bailes, the chairman of the department of neurosurgery at the West Virginia University School of Medicine, and a former team physician for the Pittsburgh Steelers whose research found similar links four years ago. โ€œThey always say, โ€˜Weโ€™re going to do our own studies.โ€™ And now they have.โ€

Sean Morey, an Arizona Cardinals player who has been vocal in supporting research in this area, said: โ€œThis is about more than us โ€” itโ€™s about the high school kid in 2011 who might not die on the field because he ignored the risks of concussions.โ€

Get the full scoop here.

Of course the league is going to stay mum as long as they can. Revenue dollars come a little harder when you can be classified as a leading cause of Alzheimer's. The Buzz isn't a doctor or anything, but repeatedly collisions at a high rate of speed just can't be good for the old bean.

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