Dementia in Football: New Study Says Heading Football ‘Changes Blood Patterns in Brain’
- 2 years ago
OSLO, NORWAY— Heading footballs and other accidental head impacts that occur while playing football “change blood patterns in the brain,” according to a new study in the journal Brain Injury.
The study, cited by The Guardian, analyzed blood samples from 89 professional footballers in Norway's top division and discovered alterations in levels of microRNAs in the brain after heading the ball.
According to the Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center, microRNAs are a family of molecules that help cells control the kinds and amounts of proteins they make, controlling the way genes produce new proteins mainly by binding with messenger RNA and preventing it from being translated into proteins.
With proteins playing a fundamental role in the work of most cells, many microRNAs have been identified as key to the regulation of cognitive functions and memory processes lost in Alzeimer’s disease, according to an article in the journal Frontiers in Pharmacology, and the new study, which found that repetitive headers alter the levels of six microRNAs that high-intensity exercise did not affect, and accidental head injuries alter eight, suggests microRNAs could be used as biomarkers to detect brain injury.
In July, responding to a string of studies into the impacts of heading like this one, the Football Association in England introduced new guidance limiting Premier League and Football League players to 10 ‘higher force’ headers in training sessions, though former Tottenham manager Espírito Santo publicly admitted ignoring it.
The study, cited by The Guardian, analyzed blood samples from 89 professional footballers in Norway's top division and discovered alterations in levels of microRNAs in the brain after heading the ball.
According to the Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center, microRNAs are a family of molecules that help cells control the kinds and amounts of proteins they make, controlling the way genes produce new proteins mainly by binding with messenger RNA and preventing it from being translated into proteins.
With proteins playing a fundamental role in the work of most cells, many microRNAs have been identified as key to the regulation of cognitive functions and memory processes lost in Alzeimer’s disease, according to an article in the journal Frontiers in Pharmacology, and the new study, which found that repetitive headers alter the levels of six microRNAs that high-intensity exercise did not affect, and accidental head injuries alter eight, suggests microRNAs could be used as biomarkers to detect brain injury.
In July, responding to a string of studies into the impacts of heading like this one, the Football Association in England introduced new guidance limiting Premier League and Football League players to 10 ‘higher force’ headers in training sessions, though former Tottenham manager Espírito Santo publicly admitted ignoring it.