To get an insight about how boxing can shorten your life expectancy, just refer to some of the recent studies that have predicted dangerous repercussions. Professional boxers may be at high risk of decreased longevity compared with both the general population and other athletes. Boxing has plenty of health and psychological benefits, but the repetitive head trauma it causes can sometimes cause long-term consequences.
Study Findings
Multiple sports, average pro athlete lifespan”How Long Do Professional Athletes Live? The results showed that boxers had the shortest lifespan of all athletes followed, with an overall mean of 67.7 years in age at death; This is much lower than the average life expectancy for general population, at 72.6 years.
A further study again from the PubMed database assessed life span in elite male athletes born between 1860and1930. Although dedicated physical training generally increases longevity for athletes, research shows that the regular punches and knockouts experienced by boxers can reduce their lifespan.
How Boxing Affects Your Life Span
The most significant reason for the discrepancy in life expectancy among boxers has to do with repeated head trauma. Every punch to the head can cause an equal and opposite micro-trauma in the brain, resulting in a disease called chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE). Often diagnosed postmortem, the degenerative brain disease has been found in athletes who suffer symptoms ranging from memory loss and mood swings to progressive cognitive impairment.
Boxing is especially troubling given the frequent head trauma. Over the course of a career, that can lead to hundreds if not thousands of concussive blows inflicted upon one’s brain — greatly increasing the chances for CTE and other neurological issues.
Balancing Risks and Benefits
Let’s not forget, that boxing too offers host of advantages such as developing cardiovascular fitness, strength and also mental toughness. On the flip side, there are certain dangers of head trauma which one cannot disregard.
Several organizations are researching how to make boxing a safer sport and ease some of these risks. This should include research into the development of better headgear, increased measures to minimize head contact in boxers and stronger support for medical monitoring.
The Bottom Line
To date, the evidence supports that boxing likely decreases ones life expectancy in part due to head trauma and yet it is a sport which remains popular and one that has evolved.
While researchers delve deeper into the lasting impacts of boxing, it is more important than ever that athletes, coaches and medical professionals alike are vigilant in ensuring safety to safeguard both present and future members contributing to – but preferably not as a result of successful bouts.
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