Can football be saved from CTE? Some people think so. New rules, better helmets, concussion protocols to take players out of the game, but is it enough? CTE, Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy is a degenerative brain disease caused by repetitive hits to the head. These hits don’t have to cause concussion. Most of the time sub-concussive … Continue reading Can Football be saved from CTE? by Laurie Carr
PBM Fund Established at University of Utah
Published in the Neurology Department Newsletter at the U Medical School Need Support for BYU Research! Larry Carr, PhD, had an exceptional college football career before going on to be a successful professor and academic; however, at age 58, Larry was diagnosed with a neurodegenerative disease thatafflicts many former football players. He was plagued with … Continue reading PBM Fund Established at University of Utah
Call For Participants
Research Description The study we are conducting at the University of Utah, department of Neurology, School of Medicine is designed to examine the impact of photobiomodulation (PBM) therapy on persistent symptoms following a history of repetitive head impacts. This therapy has been used for many decades to improve wound healing and pain associated with orthopedic … Continue reading Call For Participants
Football, CTE and Light
Football was very good to me. I loved the sport and found success as a Hall of Fame middle linebacker at BYU. Hitting and being hit, the comradery, the crowds, everything about it felt so good. Unfortunately, I paid a heavy price for my success on the field. Beginning in my early 40’s, I started … Continue reading Football, CTE and Light
This Is Not Just Another CTE Story
We are told there is no official diagnosis, cure or even an effective treatment for the neurodegenerative disease CTE, Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy. Because of this bleak reality, people are turning their backs on the personal stories chronicling the effects of this devastating condition. After all, who wants to keep hearing about athletes killing themselves, or … Continue reading This Is Not Just Another CTE Story
BYU Hall Of Fame
In 1968, I was a barely 6 foot tall and 185 pounds. I was the starting offensive center for the Canoga Park California High School varsity football team. That team would go on to win the Los Angeles City Championship for the first and only time in its 100+ year history (before the city was … Continue reading BYU Hall Of Fame
Our Journey Begins
“Life must be understood backward. But … it must be lived forward.” Søren Kierkegaard
Never stop searching!
After spending years navigating the world of brain injury and disease currently surrounding and threatening the sport I love, I have found questions without answers, denials, lies and lawsuits. However, with my wife's patience and support, eventually a path emerged that brought us peace and should provide hope to all those whose lives have been … Continue reading Never stop searching!
Reclaiming the Brain
Finally, Some Progress
After nearly a year of planning and the necessary approvals, we started the research study at the University of Utah School of Medicine to examine the effects of near-infrared light on various cognitive, motor and emotional measures in ex-athletes. The participants each have a history of repetitive collisions from participating in different sports, ie football, … Continue reading Finally, Some Progress
“We’re desperate”
I Love Football! With that said… In May of 2017, my wife and I were temporarily living in the Boston area doing genealogical research. I had been diagnosed with football related brain damage 6 years earlier (following 10+ hours of testing) and we hoped that doing service would calm symptoms that had become severe. After … Continue reading “We’re desperate”
Willful Ignorance – they should have known!
Dementia in football: Ex-players three and a half times more likely to die of conditionFormer professional footballers are three and a half times more likely to die of dementia than people of the same age range in the general population, according to new research. Read in BBC News: https://apple.news/AwI69TRGZRWiW37jLsr297Q Regardless of what many continue to … Continue reading Willful Ignorance – they should have known!
The Future of Football
Football is under attack. Not from outside the sport, the scientists, lawyers or the families of suffering players, but from the inside. Brain disease (CTE) is a cancer embedded deep within the core of the sport itself. It threatens football’s continuation under its current model unless a solution is found. We know that better helmets, … Continue reading The Future of Football
The Synergy of Light
A story in the NY Times reported a Journal of Applied Physiology research article that found weight training in rats changed the brain. The authors stated how modified strength training appeared to promote the creation of new neurons in the memory centers. This is not the first time exercise and/or other lifestyle habits have been … Continue reading The Synergy of Light
Football and the Brain 