Study suggests youth football compounds brain-damage risks

A new study of former NFL players found that those who began playing the sport at a young age had a greater risk of developing serious cognitive problems later in life.

Conducted by researchers at Boston University and published Wednesday in the journal Neurology, the study examined 42 former players, half of whom began playing before they turned 12. After conducting a battery of cognitive tests — problem-solving, verbal skills, memory, and so on — the study found that, as a group, those who started playing football at a younger age tested 20 percent worse than their peers.

To be sure, 42 is a relatively small sample size, a point the study's authors concede. Still, the findings further underscore a mounting body of evidence on the potential long term risks of playing tackle football.

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