Volume 1: Heroes Appear, People Pay Attention Chapter 113 You Have to Believe in Science, Hero

"What kind of bullshit advice is this?" Chen Yingxiong asked Bruckner, the club's chief sports medicine doctor, holding the examination report given to him by the doctor. With him were the club's head coach Dalglish and the club. Manager Niang Lu.

This is the first time the two people have met since they had a falling out. This does not mean that they have shaken hands and made peace, but because what is happening now requires the two of them to face it together and discuss a solution.

The matter is related to Chen Yingxiong.

This has to start with the large-scale physical examination organized by the club.

It was originally intended to check whether there were any hidden dangers of heart disease among the players.

Unexpectedly, the heart disease was not detected, so the physical examination institution made a suggestion to Chen Yingxiong, and attached a long appendix to explain the importance and scientific nature of this suggestion.

This suggestion first passed through the hands of the club's chief sports medicine doctor Bruckner. After reading it carefully and carefully, he gave it to the club's head coach Dalglish and Chen Yingxiong.

The advice itself is simple, a short sentence: "It is recommended that the player use his head to fight the football as little as possible."

But such a simple sentence was like a bolt from the blue for both Chen Yingxiong and Dalgliesh.

The reason why Chen Yingxiong can score goals has a lot to do with the fact that he is the best header in the world. Many times when people cannot solve the problem with their feet, Chen Yingxiong can easily solve it with his head. Especially in a league like the Premier League that attaches great importance to fighting for the ball in the air, it is self-evident how important headers are.

Now Chen Yingxiong is not allowed to use his head to head the ball, or as little as possible... Doesn't that mean that Chen Yingxiong has been ruined? Nearly one-half of his goals were scored with headers.

In other words, if he is not allowed to score with his head, his number of goals will be deducted by at least nearly half! What is this concept? This will instantly turn a world-class shooter into a near-first-class shooter...

Of course Chen Yingxiong couldn't accept this suggestion, so he simply came to Bruckner.

The angry Chen Yingxiong naturally couldn't look good when facing the elegant doctor of medicine. He felt that this was a dangerous way to ruin people's wealth.

"This is science, hero. You have to accept it." Bruckner said calmly, pushing up the silver-rimmed glasses on the bridge of his nose. He didn't feel annoyed when faced with Chen Yingxiong's foul language.

"Bullshit science!" Chen Yingxiong spat. "What's wrong with my heading the ball? Why should I not be able to header the ball?!"

"The above suggestions are to keep as little as possible..."

"What's the difference between that and not having to header the ball? If I don't have to header the ball, you would be happier!"

Bruckner spread his hands: "This is for your health, hero."

"Healthy? Hahaha!" Upon hearing this, Chen Yingxiong laughed. "Go and look at this physical examination report. Who is the healthiest person in the team? Who is the strongest person? It's me!" Chen Yingxiong poked his heart with his thumb, his expression and tone were very proud. pride.

At this time Dalgliesh spoke: "Okay, hero, calm down. Let us listen to the doctor's explanation."

After speaking, he smiled at Bruckner and nodded: "Let's get started, Doctor."

Bruckner did not read the suggestions and appendices after Chen Yingxiong's physical examination report, because these things were all in his mind and he just opened his mouth.

"As early as six years ago, an Australian neuropsychologist named Rod Markham discovered after a large amount of data collection and experimental research that heading the ball can indeed cause cumulative and long-term brain damage. Markham Dr. Mu strongly requested FIFA to cancel headers in the game last year..."

After hearing that some doctors actually called on FIFA to cancel headers in the game, Chen Yingxiong couldn't help but laugh. This is really the funniest joke he has ever heard. Heading is an integral part of football. Football without header...is it still called football? !

Bruckner glanced at him, and Chen Yingxiong curled his lips: "Okay, you continue, doctor..."

Bruckner then continued to elaborate on this issue: "A medical research report published in the Journal of the American Medical Association also showed that concussions suffered by football players due to repeated headers will damage memory and the ability to plan. In addition, Helder in the Netherlands A report on football from the Rope Santa Ana Hospital also showed that 39 percent of football players showed functional impairment in tests that identify planning abilities, while mild chronic brain damage has also been associated with heading the ball in football matches. In addition, the report also shows that 27% of players have experienced one concussion in their sports career, and another 23% of players have suffered from two to five concussions. In Europe, A thirty-year follow-up study by a medical institution shows that football players are five times more likely to develop brain diseases - such as Alzheimer's - after retirement than the general population."

Chen Yingxiong grinned and didn't care what Bruckner said. On the contrary, the expressions on the faces of Dalgliesh and Niang became more and more solemn.

"A recent two-year study of high school football teams came out. This study showed that concussions are more likely to be caused by multiple headers accumulated over time, rather than just one blow to the head. .Purdue University's research institute has studied Jefferson High School football players for two seasons, with 21 players completing relevant research in the first season and 24 completing the research in the second season. Sixteen repeat players were included. During each season and at the end of the season, pressure sensor data from each player's helmet was compared with previous brain imaging scans and cognitive tests to reveal the most important implications of the new findings. Demonstrating that a concussion is not the result of a single blow, but rather the total number of blows that occur throughout the season. A blow to a concussion proves to be the straw that falls on the camel's back. Seems inconsequential, doesn’t it?”

Chen Yingxiong shrugged, his face still showing a nonchalant expression.

"But the accumulation is terrible. The experimental process is very complicated. I think even if I say it, you may not know what it means. To put it simply, they did an experiment to test the players' brains when faced with a certain event. The level of activity during specific tasks. Using MRI functional imaging brain imaging technology, you can clearly see the activity of the brain. This scan revealed that there is a part of the brain that is most active during specific tasks. They observed changes in brain activity that suggest a Each player must use different strategies to complete the task, and this is likely due to a reduction in functional strength...For example, when you need to pick up this glass of water..." Bruckner grabbed it with his hand. cup.

"When your body is normal, you can easily pick up this cup. But if there is a problem with your brain, maybe your body cannot correctly judge how much force you should use to pick up the water cup. Maybe you After you get up, the cup will fall down again because you exert too little force. This is a sign that your brain function has weakened."

"Of course I can grab this cup very easily!" Chen Yingxiong said and grabbed the water cup that Bruckner had just put down.

"Yes, of course you can. In fact, concussion is a medical term, and it does not necessarily mean you have a concussion if you have symptoms. The impact of heading on you is subtle. Many clinicians will think that if you don't have a brain Shocking symptoms mean there is nothing wrong with you. However, even though there are no symptoms, we found that there are actually many changes." Bruckner continued after answering Chen Yingxiong's words. "The scans showed a significant correlation between the level of altered brain activity and the number and distribution of impacts the athlete sustained. Function was not altered but brain activity was altered, suggesting that certain areas were no longer used to complete the task. So Even though those tiny, hard-to-find injuries don't show up as concussions, they can have effects on the brain that last for the rest of your life. This is still circumstantial evidence, but it suggests that as a result of all impacts, concussions are still changes in the brain. .The players in the study received a number of head impacts ranging from 200 to 1,900 times in a season, with two players having more than 1,800 impacts. The sensors on the helmets displayed data on the impact on the brain. It varies from twenty Gauss units to more than one hundred Gauss units, with the most severe blows approaching three hundred Gauss units. A player experiences an impact of about twenty Gauss units when he heads the ball. According to statistics, football players in The average number of headers in a game is 8.5. But your number of headers is definitely much more than this average, not to mention that sometimes your headers are completely head-on attacks. You seem to be keen on Use your body to defeat the opponent..."

Chen Yingxiong shrugged: "This is the way men compete."

"But it's not wise at all." Bruckner shook his head.

"Hey!" Chen Yingxiong rolled his eyes.

"Such frequent head-to-head encounters will increase the burden on your brain, although every header and contention will not cause fatal damage to your brain. Quantitative changes can lead to qualitative changes, and experiments have proven that there is a clear type of change before a concussion occurs. The damage is gradually increasing, so this advice is correct and you should follow it, hero. Don’t laugh at the suggestion that headers should be eliminated from football, hero. Remember that in 2003 FIFA memo to member associations stated that referees should not Players should be prohibited from taking measures to protect themselves and not harm others. You should know why Chelsea goalkeeper Cech looks like that, right?"

Chen Yingxiong fell silent, but it could be seen that he was still very unconvinced.

He knew nothing about the various scientific experimental data listed by the medical doctor. Although the medical doctor had tried his best to use plain language to describe those very professional vocabulary, he still didn't understand it. He only knew that what he was best at was heading the ball, and heading the ball did not make him feel any discomfort.

He firmly refused to believe that he had a concussion, or that he might even have one.

Bruckner seemed to know that he could not convince this stubborn man for a while, so he changed the target of persuasion to the club's manager and the team's head coach.

"You two must know Dean Richards (den_rird), right?"

This question caused Dalglish's expression to change. Niang was stunned for a moment, and then frowned.

"He died a year ago at the age of thirty-six."

The reactions of the two people aroused Chen Yingxiong's curiosity. He didn't know who Dean Richards was, but he wanted to listen now.

But Bruckner stopped talking!

Chen Yingxiong had no choice but to ask: "Who is that?"

Dalglish seemed to be lost in thought, and he was indifferent to Chen Yingxiong's questions. Niang, who was next to him, explained to him: "Dean Richards was once a member of the England under-21 national team and played as a central defender. In 2001, he paid 8.1 million pounds to replace Campbell who left the team. He moved to Tottenham at a high price, which set a Tottenham transfer fee record at the time. However, before joining Tottenham, Richards was forced to retire due to a head disease. He often said that he would feel dizzy on the court. , which interfered with his normal game. As a central defender, Richards often used headers to clear the ball. A year before he retired, Richards was found to have brain abnormalities during a scan in the hospital. He began to recuperate for a long time. In the end, although the doctors confirmed that it was not a malignant tumor, this brain disease prevented him from continuing to play football, otherwise it would have a very negative impact on his health, so he had to retire. And Many people blame Richards' premature retirement in his prime on excessive heading, which caused severe brain damage."

Niang simply told Chen Yingxiong the reason why Richards retired, and finally he added: "He died of a brain disease last year..."

After hearing this bloody example, Chen Yingxiong fell silent.

Bruckner saw that Chen Yingxiong was silent and continued to strike while the iron was hot: "In fact, in the football circle, it is not uncommon for players to retire or die due to brain diseases. In 2005, the 57-year-old former England national team captain Mullin Hughes died of brain cancer. In January 2002, England football legend and famous striker Jeff Astor passed away at the age of only 59, and the coroner also confirmed that he died of brain cancer. Heading the ball frequently in a long career resulted in brain damage. I guess you don't want to live to be sixty, hero?"

"Uh..." Chen Yingxiong stopped being so stubborn. Of course he didn't want to live until he was in his fifties and end up with a cold because of a brain disease...

"It is precisely because of brain damage that many medical professionals suggest that FIFA cancel headers or require players to wear helmets like in rugby matches in order to minimize the damage caused to players' brains by headers. However, many football authorities do not They strongly oppose such a proposal. They believe that canceling headers will cause players to lose important scoring methods, causing the number of goals in the game to drop and affecting the enjoyment of the game. Wearing helmets will make football games become ridiculous and nondescript. Of course, I am I understand this, because I am also a footballer myself. If I were to see twenty-two people wearing helmets running and playing football on the field, I would also find it very strange... We cannot change the general trend, but I think What else can we do for your health.”

The silent Chen Yingxiong suddenly thought of something. He raised his head and asked: "This medical examination report suddenly recommends that I use headers as little as possible. Does it mean that my brain has suffered irreversible damage? Even if it is still very small?"

When he asked this question, even Dalgliesh, who had been distracted before, raised his head again and looked at him in surprise.

It must be said that asking this question made Chen Yingxiong very nervous. He was afraid of getting a positive answer. Does that mean that he would definitely become a dementia in the future, or... die early due to brain damage?

Fortunately, this time Bruckner shook his head very firmly and quickly: "No, your body is indeed better than everyone else, so there is no problem in this area yet. But if you continue to play like this, hero , based on how much you rely on headers in the game, I can guarantee that you will definitely qualify. You must know that you are only 23 years old, and your career is still very long. Inferring from your physical fitness, I think you may be able to play football until you are forty years old. If you insist on heading the ball with your head for so many years, can you imagine how many repeated impacts you will suffer? Those impacts will have a negative impact on your brain. How much damage? What a terrible number does it add up to? The reason why this report recommends you alone is because your header frequency is too high. I think your number of headers in a season may be It can reach more than 2,200 times... This is a very scary statistic. Not only for header shots, when you compete for the ball in the frontcourt, when you pass the ball, you will use your head. For your own sake of your health, you should really consider this advice seriously, hero."

After hearing that there were no problems with his brain for the time being, Chen Yingxiong breathed a sigh of relief: "I will seriously consider it, but not now, doctor. I think I still have something very important..."

His words were interrupted by Dalgliesh: "No, hero. The doctor is right, you must seriously consider this suggestion now."

This time it was Chen Yingxiong's turn to be surprised.