The NFL through USA Football has targeted mothers through a series of safety clinics "to reassure them that the game can be safe," the latest effort to "combat the toll that concussions have taken on the sport," according to a front-page piece by Ken Belson of the N.Y. TIMES. Almost three dozen Moms Clinics "have been held at NFL facilities, and current and retired players and coaches serve as trainers and spokesmen." The NFL has "aggressively promoted USA Football and Heads Up Football" on TV and in stadiums, and NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell "has even participated" in several clinics. The Mom Clinics campaign "comes as several surveys show that participation in tackle football has declined in recent years." A recent Bloomberg Politics poll found that "half of Americans did not want their sons playing football." Cowboys Exec VP & Chief Brand Officer and NFL Foundation Chair Charlotte Jones Anderson: “You are always interested in what the future of your game looks like and being able to communicate a message to maybe dissuade fears that are put in an inappropriate setting." Belson reports as concerns about concussions "have grown, USA Football has focused more energy on the Heads Up Football program, which includes courses for coaches and face-to-face workshops with trainers." A two-year study commissioned by USA Football of more than 4,000 youth football players found that just under 90% of players "did not miss a game or a practice because of injury and none suffered a catastrophic head, neck or heat-related injury." Still, given "how long it took the NFL to acknowledge the long-term risks associated with concussions, some critics question whether USA Football’s real aim is to soften the sport’s image in the face of growing skepticism about its safety" (N.Y. TIMES, 1/29).
BRAIN GAMES: ESPN.com's Tom Farrey reported a Boston Univ. study published yesterday found former NFLers "who played tackle football as young children were more likely to have thinking and memory problems as adults." Researchers "tested 42 retired players between the ages of 40 and 69 and found that those who started playing football prior to age 12 performed 'significantly worse' on three measures: estimated verbal IQ; executive function, which includes reasoning and planning; and memory impairment." The authors concluded that "incurring repeated head impacts in football between the ages of 10 and 12, a critical and sensitive window for brain development, may increase the risk of later-life cognitive impairment." Dr. Julian Bailes, the "top medical official" for Pop Warner, called the study "flawed" (ESPN.com, 1/28). The TIMES' Belson notes research has shown that boys younger than 12 who injure their brains "can take longer to recover and have poor cognition in childhood." The findings "are likely to fuel an already fierce debate about when it is safe to allow children to begin playing tackle football and other contact sports." Youth leagues "are under scrutiny for putting children at risk with head injuries" (N.Y. TIMES, 1/29).
