Category Archives: Politics/Sports

“Marty Supreme” Brings Attention to Ping Pong’s Dual Role in Brain Health

As many anticipate 2026 Academy Award nominations to be announced tomorrow, one film, in particular, has gained Oscar buzz for cinematic acumen and, from me, its focus on an often overlooked sport. An A24 Films production Marty Supreme follows a 1950s ping pong hustler through his rise to glory. (Timothée Chalamet, who portrays the star table tennis player, has already won a Golden Globe for the role.) But beyond Hollywood, the sport at the heart of the film has proven transformative for brain injury patients.

Recent NIH research reveals that ping pong has remarkable therapeutic potential for traumatic brain injury recovery. A 2024 study published in Brain Research and indexed in NIH PubMed demonstrated that long-term table tennis training significantly alters dynamic functional connectivity and white matter microstructure in large-scale brain regions – enhancing cognitive function and attention in patients recovering from neurological injuries. This is due to the sport’s simultaneous engagement of visual tracking, motor coordination, and rapid decision-making, which triggers neuroplasticity, the brain’s ability to rewire itself. A 2024 stroke rehabilitation study in the database showed significant brainwave changes in patients practicing seated table tennis, with enhanced activity in frontal and temporal regions associated with sensorimotor integration. This additionally supports broader applications of the sport for traumatic brain injury rehabilitation.

However, the term “ping pong” isn’t singly used to define the sport of table tennis. Ironically, “ping pong fracture” is the term used to describe a very serious infant condition: a depressed skull fracture that resembles a dented ball. These fractures occur in approximately 3 per 10,000 live births, often as the result of difficult deliveries. Fortunately, a 2022 World Neurosurgery systematic review of 228 cases found 96.4% achieve favorable outcomes without lasting neurological damage. Most resolve spontaneously within six months.

As is apparent, science continues to prove that ping pong’s medical connections, whether through the healing effects to the injured brain of gameplay or used to describe neonatal trauma, run deeper than any championship rally.

Brain Injury Prevention on the Slopes

Katie Watt, captain of the Bates College Nordic ski team, filed suit in December 2025 after a 597-pound unsecured bench shelter struck her during track practice in October 2024, causing a skull fracture and traumatic brain injury. The case, still pending, alleges the college failed to anchor equipment despite 30 mph winds.

Maine’s ski statute 32 M.R.S. §15217 establishes that skiers accept inherent risks, including terrain, weather, and collisions, “as a matter of law,” while preserving claims for negligent operation or maintenance. Similar statutes exist in Colorado, New Hampshire, and Utah, while Vermont statues uniquely void all liability waivers. (I was told by a lawyer that, based on their experience in New Jersey, a ski slope operator is culpable only when gross negligence is proven, such as if they dug a deep hole in the slope terrain.)

Evidence-based TBI prevention emphasizes helmet use which reduces head injury risk by 29-60%. Additionally, avoid terrain parks (31% higher head injury risk), and stop skiing by mid-afternoon when 40% of injuries occur. Groomed intermediate runs, proper lessons, and pre-season conditioning significantly reduce risk.

With proper precautions, skiers can enjoy the slopes safely while understanding their legal responsibilities.

McNabb Continues to Address “Cruelty”

Over 69,000 TBI-related deaths occur annually in the United States, yet survivors face mockery rather than support:

Recently, Payton McNabb—who suffered a traumatic brain injury during a 2022 volleyball game—was mocked by transgender comedian Stacy Cay, who called footage of McNabb’s injury “pretty funny” and criticized her for falling “like a toddler.” McNabb responded powerfully to those repugnant so-called jokes: “A grown man mocking a teenage girl’s traumatic brain injury isn’t comedy—it’s cruelty.” This is particularly notable since transgender discrimination is often at the foreword of the news and “cruelty” is one note that is used to rightfully describe it.

In schools, students with TBI face bullying from peers and even faculty. As for American adults, the percentage who have had a TBI, and are living with its consequences, ranges from 19-29%, according to recent statistics. Adults experience workplace discrimination in many ways, despite federal protections. These laws, specifically the 1996 TBI Act and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, ostensibly protect survivors from discrimination but do not eliminate the problem.

Unrelated to McNabb’s trauma, President Trump previously dismissed TBIs as “just a headache”, in reference to service members. This 2020 ignorant statement is, unfortunately, shared by many who have no first- or second-hand experience with brain injury. As commonly is the case for those who interact with those who have a neurological injury, President Trump’s understanding of brain injury and respect for brain injury survivors has since changed. Recently, he honored Payton McNabb at his Congressional address. (McNabb also addressed the North Carolina General Assembly in 2023 and her bio is currently available to view in the congressional record.)

2025 CDC Youth Football Safety Report

A CDC’s August 2025 report, Comparing Head Impacts in Youth Tackle and Flag Football, reiterates five key recommendations stated in 2021: expand flag football programs, reduce contact practices, enforce helmet-to-head penalties, teach proper tackling techniques, and provide comprehensive safety education. The research shows youth tackle players sustain 15 times more head impacts than flag football athletes.

These findings echo longstanding government concerns about youth football safety, that this website has noted since 2018. While the CDC’s rules remain sound, the persistence of these same conclusions suggests it may be time for more decisive action to accelerate the adoption of safer practices nationwide. (Some have recommended regulatory standards, funding incentives, or policy mandates, but others note concerns about overreach.)

Comparing Head Impacts in Youth Tackle and Flag Football (8/4/25): https://www.cdc.gov/traumatic-brain-injury/data-research/comparing-head-impacts/index.html#cdc_report_pub_study_section_2-more-efforts-needed-to-prevent-head-impacts-during-youth-football-games

Muhammad Ali American Boxing Revival Act Targets Brain Injury Prevention

Congressional lawmakers have introduced the Muhammad Ali American Boxing Revival Act to strengthen fighter safety protections. Representatives Brian Jack (GA) and Sharice Davids (KS) introduced this legislation in July 2025, building upon the Professional Boxing Safety Act of 1996.

The timing coincides with devastating losses in Tokyo, where Shigetoshi Kotari and Hiromasa Urakawa, both 28, died from subdural hematomas after competing on the same card at Korakuen Hall on August 2. Both fighters collapsed following their matches and underwent emergency brain surgery but died days later. Japan’s Boxing Commission subsequently reduced championship fights from 12 to 10 rounds.

The new legislation enhances the original Muhammad Ali Boxing Reform Act, enacted in 2000, which primarily addressed financial protections. This revival focuses heavily on medical safety, mandating comprehensive brain imaging including MRIs every three years and increased testing frequency after knockouts.

The lawmakers cite concerns about brain trauma in combat sports, with former MMA fighter Congresswoman Davids drawing from personal experience about ring dangers. The World Boxing Organization, a major international sanctioning body governing professional boxing globally, endorses these enhanced safety protocols to protect fighter welfare.

Call for More Studies, Not Solutions

At the start of 2019, Congress sought to showcase its “great concern” for brain injury, with Congresswoman Joyce Beatty’s (OH) introduction of H.R.280, the Concussion Awareness and Education Act of 2019.  Cosponsored by 36 others, the Bill seeks, “to provide for systemic research, treatment, awareness, and dissemination of information with respect to sports-related and other concussions.”  Specifically, it focuses on children, aged 5 to 21.  It is an admirable goal to care for America’s children, but just like similar bills that seem to go through Congress every year, it just calls for research.  Additionally, once introduced on January 8, the bill was referred to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce, where it still sits without action.

Citizens have expressed their concern over what they see as a lack of concern for the youth, but stateside, similar government pseudo-action seems to be present.  For example, the Salt Lake Tribune wrote, “there’s a dirty little secret plaguing high school sports in Utah.”  According to the newspaper, that “dirty little secret” is the incidence of concussions in high school sports.  In Washington, S.R. 5238, which is currently being considered in State Congress, “would require UW Medicine to publish and maintain a website making… research available to parents,” – again, the government is proposing research, not action.  (Some states have taken legislative action, though, by eliminating certain sports and certain actions in sports.  A bill introduced to Congress in Maryland this month, for example, “would… prohibit cheerleaders age 12 and younger from engaging in aerial stunts.”)

As I have noted in the past, this heightened concern (and, perhaps, this seeming lack of federal action) may be the cause of the decreased sports enrollment in schools.  While that is unfortunate, a positive outcome of this current parental concern could be a heightened concern for sports safety from school districts.  Even without legal mandate, this could lead to a lower concussion percentage rate for the millions of American children who, theoretically, stay on the field and court.

Skiing Into a Head Injury

Gliding down a ski slope at 60 mph, taking a ramp that lifts you up in the air with a heavy board attached to your feet and just snow below, or racing against others while doing both.  These three activities are all part of the winter routine for individuals who enjoy the extreme sports of freestyle skiing, snowboarding or snowcross.  Extreme sports are, by definition, dangerous.  A Google search of snowboarding, for example, found two pages of articles related to snowboarding deaths and accidents this year alone.

First coming into existence either in the 1950s, 1960s or 1970s, depending on which source you reference, extreme sports tap into a person’s sense of adventure.  Head and neck injuries due to winter extreme sports are common, when compared to other sports, partly because, “many extreme sports take place in environments where medical care may not be readily available.”

Throughout the years, extreme sports have become more popular, perhaps as the opportunity for adventure and physical risk of everyday life goes down and mental stress goes up.  Head and neck injuries due to winter extreme sports have also significantly increased through the years.  There is a cost to these injuries, both emotionally for the individual and monetarily for both the individual and the government through evacuation costs, rehabilitation costs and community costs in the future.  This month, the government pays more attention to these risks, as well as the needed research, as January is National Winter Sports Traumatic Brain Injury Awareness Month.

Although finding new means to treat traumatic brain injury in extreme winter sports is very important, “prevention is the top priority”.  The Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion reminds people to always wear a helmet and to make sure to watch your surroundings by staying in the boundaries in ski slopes and watching for obstacles and hazards on your path.  Just as importantly, “make sure medical care is close.”  Additionally, Dr. Pickett of the National Intrepid Center of Excellence reminds people that, “It’s important to consider how weather conditions… increase the risk for these injuries.”  While equipment is now safer and access to medical care has improved, prevention should always come first.  If you enjoy the thrill of extreme winter sports, I hope you enjoy it this winter, but know and use all available information to make it safe.

New School Year Brings New Athletic Guidelines

The new school year is well on its way and youth athletics have begun, including for “about 1 million youth between the ages of 6 and 12 [who] play tackle [football].”  However, even though this number may seem high, youth athletic participation has continued its decade-long decline again this year.  Head trauma, specifically concussions, are the major worry.

In response, the CDC has authorized new guidelines on the diagnosis and treatment of concussions and other such mild traumatic brain injuries in children. Published in the medical journal JAMA Pediatrics, and referenced by other publications nationwide since, the guidelines encompass over 25 years of research and include, “19 sets of recommendations on the diagnosis, prognosis, and management/treatment of pediatric mTBI that were assigned a level of obligation (i.e., must, should, or may) based on confidence in the evidence.”

Noting the decline in participation and increased parental concern, many states and school districts have updated their guidelines on concussion protocol.  This year, New York State Education Department stated that, “Local boards of education are strongly advised to develop a written concussion management policy.”  In Scarsdale, NY, for example, the school district announced, “the establishment of a Concussion Management Team, training for the Team and appropriate staff, protocol for student evaluation and return to play or activity, accommodations if necessary in academic areas, and a set of procedures that outline the role and responsibilities of all concerned.”  The website of the Central Valley District, NY has a thorough webpage regarding concussion protocol, as “[the] School District recognizes that protecting students from head injuries is one of the most important ways of preventing a concussion.”  (A list of all the webpages dedicated to concussion protocol, and a list of all the concussion protocols that have been recently altered due to increased public concern, is too lengthy to individually recognize.)

* It should also be noted that even with all the negative media coverage and medical concern, many school districts, parents and some publications still see the benefits of organized athletics in a child’s physical and social development.

Yoga Stretches Your Legs to Strengthen Your Mind

 

It is widely known that, as remarked on by the NIH, “Exercise-based therapies can promote recovery of function and are easily implemented in the clinical rehabilitation setting.”  Since at least the turn of this century, the government has been studying the benefits of a certain type of exercise, yoga, within various segments of the population.  In September, federally-sanctioned National Yoga Awareness Month, one should look at the specific benefits of yoga for those who have suffered a brain injury.

Though there are benefits from the practice of yoga for all individuals, the above-quote comes from a current NIH study regarding the energizing effects of exercise for those with brain injuries.  That study is not set to end until 2022, however the researchers have already discovered, “Very early [post-brain injury] exercise seems to exacerbate brain injury, while later exercise seems to be beneficial.”  (The NIH does not state how one is to determine the appropriate time in one’s recovery to restart it.) Further governmental information is limited as, in a 2012 article titled The therapeutic value of yoga in neurological disorder, the NIH stated that the benefits of exercise for those with many neurological disorders is a “largely unexamined treatment”.

In the meantime, there are known benefits of yoga for the general population, including enhancing one’s quality of life and wellbeing, and benefits specifically for the brain injured/disabled population, such benefits as: strengthening muscle, increasing flexibility, increasing endurance, coping with setbacks, calming an active mind.  Previously-mentioned Former Rep. Gabby Giffords has remarked that her recovery from brain injury has been though, “Speech therapy. Physical therapy.  And YOGA, too.”

As the government states, “The purpose of this month is to promote the health and benefits of yoga and inspire a healthy lifestyle.”  In celebration, many yoga studios and gyms are offering free yoga classes this month.  Yoga can also be accessed through your television, computer and smart phone.

(However, if you do not begin to exercise or do not continue with your exercise/yoga schedule, do not fret.  Few people, with a TBI or not, adhere entirely to their workout schedules.  Additionally, the NIH found that, “Injury severity, age and pre-injury exercise history predict adherence to a home-based exercise program in adults with traumatic brain injury.”)

The Importance of PLAY(S)

Children generally have more physical energy than their adult counterparts. As a consequence, many participate in youth sports leagues, which not only provide physical activity, but also teach them to work effectively with their peers.  Last year, Senator Capito (WV) proposed Senate Resolution 227 which marked July 16 – 22 as National Youth Sports Week.  According to the bill, the week is, “a celebration of youth sports participation and all of the benefits youth derive from engagement in sports.”

In 2018, “[this] week… thousands of youth sports coaches, athletic directors, recreation directors, association members, sponsors, young athletes, and parents across the country show their support focusing on P.L.A.Y.S. ~ Physical activity, Living healthy, Access, Youth development, Safety.”  While having access to the physical activity and youth development provided by sports, which is a key part of healthy living, is important, the S (safety) should always be included in the celebration.

***The bones of children are still in development and, therefore, weaker.  Additionally, the coating of myelin, neuron fibers, in the brain of youth is still in development.  Because of this, physical injury, including skull injury, is more common and more severe in children, than in adults.  Particularly this can be found in sports, most notably in youth football, youth hockey and youth soccer, but the risk is present in all sports.  (For example, this month, the CDC published an article that identifies brain infection/injury as a rare, but possible result of fresh water swimming.)  Additionally, beyond physical safety, sports may affect the brain psychologically, but this affect can also be positive.  New Jersey, among other states, has a youth sports concussion law, “to help reduce the risk of student-athletes suffering concussion, and its long-term consequences.”  Included as a possible long-tern consequence is a traumatic brain injury.