The brain traumas recently suffered by Tua Tagovailo call into serious question our morality as a society. Tua is an adult and can make decisions for himself. However, children lack the maturity and legal ability to make many decisions for themselves. Medical professionals claim the brain is not fully developed until the mid twenties. Yet multiple national in depth studies definitively show that participating in American football results in numerous debilitating physical injuries. Over 20% of all bone breaks, gruesome joint and spine injuries each year in 14-18 yrs old are the result of participating in American Football. It is estimated that a third of all football players have had a concussion while practicing or playing American football. Most are undiagnosed. In coaching parlance , they “get their bell rung” and are praised for their manliness in absorbing the pain and reentering the fray. They are told to ‘suck it up and take it for the team’.
These life changing injuries have been well documented for decades. Now CTE, or chronic traumatic encephalopathy, a degenerative brain disease linked to head trauma, has been cited as causes of death, erratic and violent behavior and suicides in over 50 former American football participants. American football players have a 15 TIMES greater incidence of CTE than the general population.
Supposedly adults are more experienced and capable of weighing the risks associated with their actions. Young children act impulsively and emotionally, often never calculating the possible outcomes of their acts. That is why adults must be in positions to regulate their activities and offer reasoned guidance.
Allowing children to engage in dangerous ‘games’ and activities is tantamount to child abuse and neglect. Parents, coaches and school districts that encourage such activities should not be surprised in the future to be defendants in lawsuits by the affected individuals.
The lives of young people are too valuable to sacrifice for frivolity. There are multiple less perilous alternatives to provide physical athleticism and teach the positive lessons team sports have to offer. Claiming American football is a safe way to improve the body and mind is a lie.