Concussions and Football Helmets
Football is one of America’s most watched and played sports. On any day of the week, families across the nation watch as high school, college, and professional athletes compete against one another. Unfortunately, it is very rare to watch a game not be stopped for some kind of injury. One of the most common and dangerous injuries is a concussion. Most people do not think twice about a concussion and think it’s not a serious injury, but it is. It is a silent killer and symptoms may never show up in somebody that has one, so they keep on playing and worsening their condition. Many people have debated to get rid of football because of the dangers of a concussion. Scientists and officials are now racing the clock to make the game and equipment safer, before it is too late. Concussions are dangerous and a big problem for football because they can lead to diseases later on in life. Smart helmets can solve the problem by …show more content…
Raymond Colello, a neuroscientist at Virginia Commonwealth University at Richmond was watching a football game when he came up with the idea of putting magnets in helmets (Wheeling). According to Kate Wheeling, about 60 percent of concussions in football are head-to-head collisions. Colello predicts that magnets could broaden the impact zone beyond the helmet, slowing down the collision and would reducing the force of impact (Wheeling). Adding small magnets made from neodymium could repel at least 300 pounds of an impact (Wheeling). Reducing that amount of force from a hit could dramatically drop the number of concussions in football. Collelo also performed a test where he found that the magnets could reduce 140 g hits to 88 g’s, which is a very significant drop (Wheeling). Magnets could be the cheapest and easiest answer if they were to be used, but first Collelo needs to pass some more tests before the next phase
Football is one of America’s most watched and played sports. On any day of the week, families across the nation watch as high school, college, and professional athletes compete against one another. Unfortunately, it is very rare to watch a game not be stopped for some kind of injury. One of the most common and dangerous injuries is a concussion. Most people do not think twice about a concussion and think it’s not a serious injury, but it is. It is a silent killer and symptoms may never show up in somebody that has one, so they keep on playing and worsening their condition. Many people have debated to get rid of football because of the dangers of a concussion. Scientists and officials are now racing the clock to make the game and equipment safer, before it is too late. Concussions are dangerous and a big problem for football because they can lead to diseases later on in life. Smart helmets can solve the problem by …show more content…
Raymond Colello, a neuroscientist at Virginia Commonwealth University at Richmond was watching a football game when he came up with the idea of putting magnets in helmets (Wheeling). According to Kate Wheeling, about 60 percent of concussions in football are head-to-head collisions. Colello predicts that magnets could broaden the impact zone beyond the helmet, slowing down the collision and would reducing the force of impact (Wheeling). Adding small magnets made from neodymium could repel at least 300 pounds of an impact (Wheeling). Reducing that amount of force from a hit could dramatically drop the number of concussions in football. Collelo also performed a test where he found that the magnets could reduce 140 g hits to 88 g’s, which is a very significant drop (Wheeling). Magnets could be the cheapest and easiest answer if they were to be used, but first Collelo needs to pass some more tests before the next phase