Concussion PSA Compares Youth Football Dangers To Smoking

BOSTON (AP) — Everybody seems to be having fun when the kids in a new public service announcement are just playing football, until one boy is thrown to the ground and the background music turns ominous. Then, the coach starts handing out cigarettes. “Tackle football is like smoking,” a youthful voice-over says as a smiling, motherly type lights a cigarette for one of the pre-teen players. “The younger I start, the longer I’m exposed to danger.” “Tackle Can Wait ” is part of a campaign by the Boston-based Concussion Legacy Foundation to steer children under 14 years old into flag football and away from the contact version of the sport. The organization says children who start playing tackle football at the age of 5 have 10 times the risk of developing the degenerative brain disease chronic traumatic encephalopathy compared to those who wait until they are 14. How is youth tackle football like smoking? The longer you play, the greater the risk. Over time, a child’s risk of developing CTE from tackle may add up faster than a smoker’s risk of developing lung cancer. Learn about the research at https://t.co/MuW7hPVR2s pic.twitter.com/fbutQ4BSuz — Concussion Legacy Foundation (@ConcussionLF) October 10, 2019 “Tackle football is really a man’s game, and it’s incredibly dangerous to the developing brain,” CLF co-founder Chris Nowinski says in a video accompanying the ad . “We now have the data that ...
Source: WBZ-TV - Breaking News, Weather and Sports for Boston, Worcester and New Hampshire - Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Tags: Boston News Health Concussion Legacy Foundation Concussions Youth Football Source Type: news