When NFL player Junior Seau committed suicide in 2012, he shot himself in the chest to ensure that his brain was preserved for scientific study. Years of professional football had left him with traumatic brain trauma that resulted in chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), a degenerative disease that can produce depression, impulsivity, memory loss, emotional regulation difficulties, and suicidal thoughts. While the illness ultimately took his life, he was determined to make his death meaningful, raise awareness about dangerous conditions within professional football, and provide his loved ones with answers; CTE can only be diagnosed post-mortem, and by leaving his brain intact, scientists were able to confirm what he had suspected. A year earlier, Chicago Bears safety David Duerson had taken his life in a similar fashion after texting his son, “Please, see that my brain is given to the NFL’s brain bank.” Upon analysis, it was confirmed that he too had suffered from CTE.
The deaths of these talented athletes have sparked a nationwide conversation about the damage caused by sports in which blows to the head are seen as par for the course, and raised serious concerns amongst those who participate in high-contact athletic activities. According to the National Center for Injury Prevention, 47% of high school football players experience a concussion each season and 35% report multiple concussions within a season. The real numbers are most likely even higher, as the American College of Sports Medicine estimates that only 15% of concussions are formally diagnosed. Although football has the highest proportion of concussions, hockey and lacrosse follow closely behind. While extreme outcomes like CTE are still relatively rare, new research indicates that traumatic brain injuries may be responsible for causing and aggravating a much more common affliction: Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD).
