Block kids under 12 from playing tackle football
Signups for Pop Warner football began June 2, bringing the topic of head injury back into discussion. Pop Warner football dates back to Philadelphia, 1929. In 2018, participants nationwide ages 5-16 are expected to exceed 250,000, including 7,500 in California.
Despite the flood of medical evidence documenting the dangers of neurologic damage from repetitive, sub-concussive blows to the head, recent attempts at the legislative level to protect children have failed. Assemblyman Kevin McCarty, D-Sacramento, introduced Assembly Bill 2108, the Safe Youth Football Act, in February. It garnered attention throughout the state and the nation. The bill sought to limit tackle football to children 12 and older.
Supporters of Pop Warner protested, and McCarty wound up pulling the bill for lack of support. Prior to its demise, a Bay Area Pop Warner program organized a protest and got 45,833 signatures in opposition to the bill.
AB 2108 is good for children. The goal is not to ban tackle football. It’s to set a minimum threshold age to play. In our society, other age thresholds exist for the protection of children. The idea is to minimize the chances of acquiring Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy.
CTE is caused by repetitive, sub-concussive, blows to the head. Children who wait until high school to play tackle football have a better chance of avoiding CTE symptoms, including depression, memory loss and dementia. Non-contact flag foot- ball provides a positive, competitive and safer opportunity to learn the necessary football skills. John Madden, former head coach of the Oakland Raiders and Hall of Fame broadcaster, famously made his point clear: “They can play flag football — and with flag football they get all the techniques. They don’t need helmets at this age.”
The petition opposing the legislation says: “No research has definitively linked long-term brain damage or CTE to partici- pation in youth tackle football.” But a September 2017 New York Times article (“Playing tackle football before 12 is tied to brain problems later”) did just that. Top medical experts agree. “The research is clear — when children participate in high-impact, high-contact sports, there is a 100 percent risk of exposure to brain damage,” said Dr. Bennet Omalu, portrayed in the awardwinning book and 2015 film, “Concussion.” “Once you know the risk involved in something, what’s the first thing you do? Protect children from it.”
The numbers for children are staggering. In 2018, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention identified for children 14 years and younger 640,000 emergency department visits, 18,000 hospitalizations and 1,500 deaths. The report showed 14 percent of these children were found to have suffered residual and continuing disability defined as “specialized medical care and educational services.”
While concussion protocols are good, they must go further. Science and medicine aside, famous football names support the idea behind AB 2108. Nick Buoniconti (Miami Dolphins) and Phil Villapiano (Oakland Raid- ers) urge the higher age threshold. Buoniconti told CNN: “I beg of you, all parents, to please don’t let your children play football until high school.” Buoniconti, 77, has been diagnosed with dementia and probable CTE. Echoing Madden, Buoniconti said: “Youth tackle football is all risk with no reward.”
A recent publication in Brain by Dr. Lee Goldstein found that CTE can start early in life, without signs of concussion. Goldstein’s research supports Villapiano and Buoniconti and urges the age threshold of 14 because children aren’t strong enough to counteract the bobbling of the head and shaking of the brain that occurs during contact.
The risk of injury to children is too high. Perhaps with a bit more time and education, AB 2108 will evolve into a law that will decrease these numbers and minimize the risks that children face with repetitive blows to the head. NFL coaches and players agree with leading medical experts: AB 2108 is a touchdown.