Tonight, a new study raising the possibility of anot
cause of CTE the degenerative brain disease that
found in the brains of hundreds of deceased NFL player
National correspondent Axel Tso has a story tonight
from New York doctors and advanced researchers have
long thought that the number of concussions suffered
athletes increased their likelihood of being diagnosed
with the degenerative brain dis CTE A DC is only
officially diagnosed after deat The brain disease has
been discovered in the brains of more than 370 former
NFL players including some of the game's greats. But a
new Harvard study says concussions are not the biggest
factor when it comes to developing CTE. Instead, it can
occur with repeated hits to the head, whether
concussive or not. The problem is when we're talking
about CT risk with the NFL players, their exposure
didn't all happen at the NFL level. Their exposure
happened throughout their entir lives in the decade or
more before they ended up participating. The NFL dr Dan
Dani, an assistant professor at Harvard Medical School
was the lead author of the study. He says the majority
of forceful head hits suffered by football players
aren't even happening during the game. Over two thirds
of head impacts uh for a football player occur in
practice typically. And so, if we eliminate half of the,
the head impacts that occur in practices based on just
eliminating those practices, no change to the game at
all. We could decrease the risk of CT for an average
say offensive lineman by about 50% over eight years.
The study used 20 years of data from football helmet
sensors, estimating the cumulat impact of hits on
more than 600 former football players who donated th
brains to Boston University. The research found that
linemen were more prone to developing CTE than players
at any other position despite experiencing l
forceful hits, both offensive and defensive linemen
experience the most total G force impact each season
due to the sheer number of hits they endured. We also
know from helmet sensor studies that for every
concussion that a football player gets, they get
upwards of 334 head impacts that are of stronger
intensity of more force than a head impact that results
in a concussion. You have concerns because you know,
you, you know how violent the sport is, you know, the
type of hits you took for NFL running back. Doug
Chapman knows the perils that come with playing the
sport. Chatman was a standout running back at Marsha
University and played five years in the NFL. Players
may only remember that one hit but they forget the 47
hits that led up to that concussion. Chapman onl
remembers sports of one of the biggest hits he says he
took during his career. I remember the guy that hit me
and I remember where we were and I remember the
aftermath. It was my college and pro teammate Randy
Moss standing over top of me with his hand out and he's
like, man, you straight, you straight. And I had no
idea where I was. I had no idea how I got there. I just
remember, look, looking down in my jersey and it was
just covered in blood in the front batman. Now, the
director of player development for Marshall
University's football team says safety is a top
priority for him as he watches his student athletes. A
lot of our staff has not just been around a lot of
football, you know, we've played football, we have four
members of our staff that play in the NFL. And so, you
know, when you have that many eyes that have seen so
much of the game, you know, we, we're very proactive
with watching our guys when they take big shots,
watching their body language, u how they got up, how
they're reacting on the sideline, the goal. Now, dr
Danio says is reducing the number of hits and their
impacts, new advanced technology, helps that effort.
More professional and college football players are
wearing the QE collar the first and only FDA approved
neck device that protects the brain during repetitive
head blows. The NFL is also recommending the expand
use of a soft shell helmet cover to increase the
protection of players during practices and off season
training for youth football leagues including Pop
Warner. Many coaches have eliminated tackling during
practices. Chapman says leagues across all sports need
to do a better job protecting athletes, the sp
themselves that make so much money off of the brand,
need to protect those players that help build its brand
axel T scrapes news.