The University of Massachusetts-Lowell Center for Public Opinion recently conducted a poll about American’s opinions on the health effects of sports-related concussions. The findings were simple: people are concerned.

The survey asked a 1,000 American adults about their opinions on sports safety when it came to head injuries, concussions, and chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE).

According to Sports Illustrated, the poll found four of five American adults don’t think tackle football should be played by children under 14 years old. 94% of women don’t think it should be played before 10 while 72% of men thought it shouldn’t be played before age 14.

“One of the key findings from the poll is that there is widespread awareness of CTE among respondents who identify themselves as sports fans. Among them, 66% say head injuries in sports are a major problem and they are critical of the handling of the concussions by sports organizations like the NFL and NHL,” Professor Joshua Dyck, co-director of the Center for Public Opinion, said.

87% of the adults surveyed also stated they think brain trauma resulting in CTE is a serious health concern.

“This poll confirms a growing public awareness that concussions can result in CTE, a degenerative brain disease, and that CTE is now viewed as a serious public health issue,” said Associate Prof. Jeffrey Gerson, a UMass Lowell professor who also worked on the poll. “The poll also confirms that the public believes that one of the greatest threats to athletes is at the youth level. The public’s negative view of tackle football for children under 14 and heading a soccer ball in youth soccer may lead to further changes in these sports that can have a ripple effect on sports for older children, especially at the high school level.”

President and Co-Founder of the Concussion Legacy Foundation, Chris Nowinski, might have given the strongest quote in the UMass-Lowell Press Release:

“These survey results show that nearly all adults agree that forcing a child to play a game where they are hit in the head a few hundred times a year is not an appropriate activity.”

The survey was conducted by YouGov on behalf of the UMass-Lowell Center for Public Opinion from May 31st to June 6th.

[Sports Illustrated/Photo: Gerardo Mora and NBC Chicago]

About David Lauterbach

David is a writer for The Comeback. He enjoyed two Men's Basketball Final Four trips for Syracuse before graduating in 2016. If The Office or Game of Thrones is on TV, David will be watching.