Soccer players who regularly use head more likely to develop Alzheimer’s

By Mark Waghorn via SWNS

Soccer players who frequently head the ball are up to three-and-a-half times more likely to develop Alzheimer's, according to new research.

Most prone are those who do it more than 15 times per match or training session - such as strikers and center halves.

The results are based on 469 retired professional players in England - adding to evidence the 'beautiful game' can cause dementia.

Corresponding author Dr. Weiya Zhang, of the University of Nottingham, said: "To our knowledge, this is the first study primarily focusing on heading frequency during soccer players' professional career period and its long-term consequences, specifically cognitive impairment and dementia.

"Both match and training heading frequency were associated with a risk of cognitive impairment in the player's later life, the associations were dose dependent and the findings were consistent across self-reported physician-diagnosed Alzheimer's disease."

Participants were over 45 and registered with the PFA (Professional Footballers' Association) or a League Club Players' Association.

Compared with those reporting five or fewer headers per match or training session, reporting six to 15 or over 15 was linked to a nearly threefold and 3.5 higher risk for cognitive impairment, respectively.

Concussion involving memory loss was also associated with over three times greater risk - with similar results observed for dementia.

Dr. Zhang said: "The odds of having cognitive impairment tended to increase according to playing position, being lowest for goalkeepers followed by midfielders, forwards and defenders."

It's believed repetitive heading has a cumulative damaging effect on brain health - supported by chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) noted on autopsies of athletes who participated in contact sports, including former footballers.

Dr. Zhang said: "In active players, heading the ball just 20 times during practice sessions can cause immediate and measurable effects on cognitive ability and function.

"Therefore, it would seem advisable to reduce exposure to head impacts and repetitive subconcussive head injuries."

Professional footballers in Scotland are to be banned from heading the ball in training the day before and the day after a game.

Clubs are also being told to limit exercises that involve repetitive heading to one session per week.

The new guidelines come after Glasgow University research that showed former footballers were three-and-a-half times more likely to die from brain disease.

Dr. Zhang said: "Soccer players are exposed to chronic traumatic brain injury from two main routes: concussions from head collisions and repetitive subconcussive impacts from heading the ball, which is a unique aspect."

The participants were born between 1936 and 1976, with an average age of 64, and starting to have cognitive impairment. Hence, they were more suitable for assessing potential long-term deficits.

Dr. Zhang said: "The findings of this cross-sectional study suggest that repetitively heading the ball is a risk factor for cognitive impairment and self-reported dementias in retired UK soccer players.

"Further study is required to identify a safe maximum heading frequency per match and training session to mitigate this risk."

Dementia has killed four members of England's World Cup-winning team of 1966.

They include Ray Wilson, Martin Peters, Jack Charlton and Nobby Stiles. Sir Bobby Charlton is suffering from the same condition.

The latest findings, published in JAMA Network Open, add to growing concern about the health effects of headers first raised following the death, aged just 59, of former England and West Bromwich Albion striker Jeff Astle in 2002.

The cause of his death was a degenerative brain disease that had first become apparent as much as five years earlier.

A coroner found that the repeated minor trauma of heading the ball had been the cause of Astle's death, as the leather footballs used in his playing days were considerably heavier than the plastic ones used later, especially when wet.

In 2015, his family launched the Jeff Astle Foundation, raising awareness of brain injury in all forms of sport, as well as offering support to those affected.

The charity has grown in size with high profile patrons including high-profile former England internationals Alan Shearer and Gary Neville.

West Bromwich Albion has announced that the Jeff Astle Foundation will be its Official Charity Partner for the 2023/24 season with the home kit for the new campaign dedicated to the club's legendary former striker.

The club will make a donation to the Foundation for every home shirt sold, and will also support the charity’s initiatives throughout the season.