Doctor calls for more attention to MMA head trauma
The human brain is magically coordinated. The two hemispheres are always on the same page. I wish I could say…
The human brain is magically coordinated. The two hemispheres are always on the same page. I wish I could say the same for professional sports. Compare the National Football League (NFL) with professional mixed martial arts (MMA) and their attitudes toward traumatic brain injuries. The NFL has launched a concussion education program that puts its message right in the players’ faces. The only thing MMA promoters put in competitors’ faces is another fighter’s fist.
Of course, MMA is the popular new kid on the block. Its promoters may be too busy counting their pay-per-view profits to consider the well-being of their ambitious fighters. But the NFL front office and its players union have been around for a while. They’ve read studies describing autopsies of retired players. They’ve had some time to contemplate the long-range consequences of repeated blows to the head (brain). They pulled their own heads out of the sand, and plastered the walls of NFL locker rooms with the bold warning: Repeat concussions can change your life and your family’s life forever.
Evidence that professional contact sports can be hazardous to brain health has been accumulating for years. Retired NFL players are at greater risk of depression, and dementia (global decline in cognitive function). In a culture of denial, the risk could be passed down through generations of players. One poster drafted for the NFL campaign showed children engaged in different sports, with the reminder, Other athletes are watching.
Unfortunately, the growing population of MMA fighters is not watching. They are the closest thing to ancient Roman gladiators in the modern world. Promoters seem like they would rather let a defenseless fighter take three, four, five (or nine) full-force repetitive punches to the head, then stop the fight and spoil the fans’ fun. The fighters themselves are happy to be making a decent living after years of working their way up the amateur ranks. But what they call a career may only be slow, cerebral suicide.
According to cynics, the NFL’s anti-concussion crusade is all about covering their assets. But the popular sport of MMA and its wealthy promoters must accept that they have assets to cover, too. It is in their interest to protect competitors. Fighters and football players are not expendable infantry, with brains that can be written off as collateral damage. As the government of Ontario moves towards allowing the first professional MMA fight here in 2011, promoters can almost taste victory in this long jurisdictional battle. The crowds are roaring to see some blood spilled. Added tax dollars that gush from MMA fights are increasingly difficult for politicians to ignore. I hope these decision-makers take all the necessary steps in the coming months to ensure fan gratification isn’t being bought at the price of mental disability.