"Dementia has long been a severe problem for former NFL players. In the past, the 88 Fund was established specifically to support care for football players who develop dementia. There is a growing movement among NFL retirees to donate their brains to the center for CTE at Boston University Medical School. Only via autopsy can the true extent of damage be documented and the diagnosis of CTE confirmed.
That is why it is so shocking to me that players still headhunt on the field and fans scream for harder hits from the stands. When a helmet-to-helmet collision occurs on a football field, a player suffers brain damage. NFL players should find it unacceptable behavior to cause brain damage to a colleague." -- Neil Minkoff
By +Max Wallack
+Alzheimer's Reading Room
Apparently, the President has invited the 1985 Chicago Bears, that year’s Super Bowl winners, to visit the White House for a celebration. Because of the Challenger disaster, the White House celebration customary for Super Bowl winners never took place in 1985.
Dr. Minkoff points out that Jim MacMahon, the 1985 quarterback for the Chicago Bears, “has no memory left”, and very likely suffers from Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy.
Dr. Minkoff suggests that this meeting at the White House would be the perfect opportunity for our President to take a stand by publicizing the situation and urging the NFL to take a stronger stand against plays that increase the risk of Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy.
I agree. President Obama could and should use this opportunity to bring focus to the large numbers of former sports heroes suffering from dementia.
- How Alzheimer's Destroys the Brain -- Video
- Test Your Memory for Alzheimer's (5 Best Self Assessment Tests)
- What is Alzheimer's Disease?
- What is Dementia?
- What’s the Difference Between Alzheimer’s Disease and Dementia
- Communicating in Alzheimer's World
- How the Loss of Memory Works in Alzheimer’s Disease, and How Understanding This Could Help You
- Learning How to Communicate with Someone Suffering From Alzheimer's Disease
- Does the Combination of Aricept and Namenda Help Slow the Rate of Decline in Alzheimer's Patients
Max Wallack is a student at Boston University Academy. His great grandmother, Gertrude, suffered from Alzheimer's disease. Max is the founder of PUZZLES TO REMEMBER. PTR is a project that provides puzzles to nursing homes and veterans institutions that care for Alzheimer's and dementia patients.
Original content Max Wallack, the Alzheimer's Reading Room