Chris Sutton talking about heading the ball and dementia risk

I know Chris Sutton is not everyone's cup of tea (certainly not mine), but I think this kind of interview gives you a bit of a different perspective on someone - which it's important to have. And it's about a hugely important topic, given all the emerging evidence.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/av/football/56651464

Saw it earlier on BBC News, very emotional watch.

Very sad about his dad. Actually don't mind Sutton and think he is spot on.

This was the original listen, a very powerful podcast from last year.

https://open.spotify.com/episode/4uK...TM-n2dM-9bKamQ

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Originally Posted by hibsbollah

This was the original listen, a very powerful podcast from last year.

https://open.spotify.com/episode/4uK...TM-n2dM-9bKamQ

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Yeah, listened to that at the time.

My own Dad was a player, largely during the 50s and heading was a big part of his game. He also now has dementia. There’s so much out there now on the risks. Good that there’s awareness now for the younger generation and footballs certainly aren’t what they were back in the day but hopefully all the right precautions are taken at early ages.

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Originally Posted by Andy74

Yeah, listened to that at the time.

My own Dad was a player, largely during the 50s and heading was a big part of his game. He also now has dementia. There’s so much out there now on the risks. Good that there’s awareness now for the younger generation and footballs certainly aren’t what they were back in the day but hopefully all the right precautions are taken at early ages.

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Sadly there’s still a misapprehension that the risk has disappeared because the modern ball is lighter and therefore heading it is less dangerous. Unfortunately this isn’t the case as lighter balls fly faster and any benefit gained from the weight is overridden by the speed (or the velocity, strictly speaking). Kids are now limited in how often they practice heading in training, which is a good thing.

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Originally Posted by hibsbollah;[URL="tel:6520106"

6520106[/URL]]Sadly there’s still a misapprehension that the risk has disappeared because the modern ball is lighter and therefore heading it is less dangerous. Unfortunately this isn’t the case as lighter balls fly faster and any benefit gained from the weight is overridden by the speed (or the velocity, strictly speaking). Kids are now limited in how often they practice heading in training, which is a good thing.

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it doesn’t help that the ‘long ball’ is still very much of the game although a lot of kids clubs are focusing more on playing the ball on the ground.

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Originally Posted by hibsbollah

Sadly there’s still a misapprehension that the risk has disappeared because the modern ball is lighter and therefore heading it is less dangerous. Unfortunately this isn’t the case as lighter balls fly faster and any benefit gained from the weight is overridden by the speed (or the velocity, strictly speaking). Kids are now limited in how often they practice heading in training, which is a good thing.

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What is the explanation given for all the women who had/have dementia who's closest experience to a football was picking it up from the bedroom floor and putting it in the closet, both my grannies for example.
Worldwide stats women outnumber men by a huge margin.

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Originally Posted by Crunchie

What is the explanation given for all the women who had/have dementia who's closest experience to a football was picking it up from the bedroom floor and putting it in the closet, both my grannies for example.
Worldwide stats women outnumber men by a huge margin.

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No one is comparing men to women. Ex footballers have a much higher percentage of dementia compared to men in general so therefore a cause for concern.

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Originally Posted by Crunchie

What is the explanation given for all the women who had/have dementia who's closest experience to a football was picking it up from the bedroom floor and putting it in the closet, both my grannies for example.
Worldwide stats women outnumber men by a huge margin.

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In your grannies example, I’d imagine they contracted dementia from non impact reasons.

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Originally Posted by DIXIHIBS

No one is comparing men to women. Ex footballers have a much higher percentage of dementia compared to men in general so therefore a cause for concern.

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Ex footballers also live longer than the general male population. It's a complex brain disease with many factors unknown as to the cause.

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Originally Posted by Crunchie

What is the explanation given for all the women who had/have dementia who's closest experience to a football was picking it up from the bedroom floor and putting it in the closet, both my grannies for example.
Worldwide stats women outnumber men by a huge margin.

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There are multiple different risk factors for dementia, including previous illness (people are at more risk if they've had diabetes at certain stages in life, for example), smoking, alcohol intake, certain genetic factors and, of course, just old age (when various biological processes can kick in). The recent studies into football show persistent damage from heading a ball is another such risk.

That said, there is lots of useful info out there on (eg) NHS websites, Alzheimer's charities etc. - hibs.net is probably not the best source of medical information on the web (no offence, admins!).

It reminds you that footballers are just people, no matter what their media persona implies. Well done to Sutton for speaking so candidly. It was very touching.