The Shocking Truth Behind NFL Player Suicides: Is CTE the Real Culprit or Just the Tip of the Iceberg?
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At first glance, CTE would seem to be the most obvious explanation. But the picture is a little murkier. Although the first NFL-adjacent case of CTE wasn’t diagnosed until 2002, it is almost certain that undiagnosed CTE cases were at least as prevalent in 20th century football as they are today. Indeed, taking improvements in helmet design into account, instances of CTE were likely even more common in the past. And yet, suicide rates among NFL players increased in the 2010s. What happened?
Suicide contagion – or a rise in copycat attempts in the wake of a high-profile suicide, is a very real and scientifically well-established phenomenon – and may explain some of the rise. The 2010s featured several events at the intersection of the NFL, mental health and suicide which were widely covered in the media. Seau, a beloved Hall of Famer, killed himself in 2012. Concussion, a Will Smith movie retelling of Dr Bennet Omalu’s efforts to convince the NFL of CTE’s risks, was released in 2015. Partly owing to public pressure in the wake of increased media coverage of the issue, the NFL acknowledged a link between football and CTE during a Congressional hearing on the subject in 2016. Public mentions of CTE have only increased since then.
One aspect of CTE may also make it particularly potent when it comes to suicide contagion – CTE can only be definitely diagnosed after death. With no way to confirm if they’ve developed CTE, potentially affected players are left in a perpetual state of uncertainty, wondering whether every headache or misplaced housekey is a momentary mental lapse or a symptom of something more ominous. Broadly speaking, professional diagnosis of a chronic condition is already associated with an increased risk of suicide, and many players are essentially self-diagnosing CTE.
To clarify – the Harvard study’s findings do not imply that CTE is blameless when it comes to suicide among NFL players. Instead, the study reaffirms that CTE is just one of many possible factors. Imagine simultaneously pouring two full pints of juice – orange and apple – at the same rate into a third, empty pint glass. Juice would, of course, soon pour out of the third glass, but was it the orange juice or apple juice that caused the spill?
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