Football Makes for a Hazardous Sport in the United States

Football makes for a Hazardous Sport
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Football is a sport followed by many people in the United States. Some people enjoy watching it on television or in person, while others participate by playing. People who play football are often faced with physical aggression because this sport involves body to body contact. Football, therefore, can be dangerous. However, violence and field injuries are the direct result of the National Football League (NFL). The National Football League regulates football and “if the league values player safety more than ever specifically avoiding concussions and the long-term effects of head trauma (Chadiha, August 2012),” they would be committed to making football a much safer sport for players by enforcing stricter rules for the game.
Football can cause a player to become paralyzed if they are hit in the wrong location of the body. Playing football has led to “broken necks and fractured skulls” (Zimmerman, 2014) which can lead to a career or life ending injury. One study conducted by researchers from Boston University about head injuries of sportsmen and women revealed that most of the former professional football players had signs of the injured brain. Cases of head injuries are alarming to the point where some experts and scholars suggest the game should be banned or at least be made safer.
According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, cases of head injuries and concussions as a result of playing football are alarmingly high. The Center reports that there were about 3.8 million cases of concussions reported in the year 2012. The figure is double when compared to the year 2002. The Center further reports that about 33% of concussions happen during practice before playing main games. It is striking that more than 5 million people in America live with health conditions related to traumatic brain injury (Center for Disease Control, 2012). According to the statistics by Center for Disease Control and Prevention, it is hazardous to play football since there are high chances of head injury and concussions. Zimmerman (2014) emphasizes the dangers of football playing. He notes that the biggest concern associated with playing football is head injuries and concussions (Zimmerman, 2014).
According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, a concussion is a type of traumatic brain injury that is caused by a blow or hard impact to the body resulting in shuffling back and forth of the brain in the skull. Over a long period of time, concussions can result in changes in chemicals and cells within the brain, including those necessary for memory, concentration and solving problems. The continuous blows to the head witnessed in football result in repeated concussions. If the victim does not get enough rest after every concussion, it will likely result in traumatic brain injuries (Cantu Robert &Mark Hyman, 2012).
According to Jonathan Zimmerman (2014), some experts argue that football at any level proposed will remain to be unsafe regardless of the initiatives introduced. The first modifications to the game happened in the early 1900s. Before the changes were introduced, football resembled rugby where players p...