Exercise can improve your memory, but some sports include additional memory risks, such as boxing, diving, football, skiing, and soccer. This is because of particular potential for head injury. When injuries occur, Nimodipine is one drug used to treat memory loss due to sudden loss of blood to the brain. (Yount, p. 61)

Soccer Examples:

• A Univ. of Florida soccer player retired because she was worried that heading balls was damaging her brain. She had experienced blurred vision and memory lapse a year earlier and then symptoms returned. (Brewington, 1999)
• The Sept. 1999 Journal of the American Medical Association reported Dutch researcher that compared brain functions of amateur soccer players with middle-distance runners & swimmers. They found decreased performance in memory among soccer players. (Brewington, 1999)

Head injury information

• coma - state of prolonged unconsciousness in which the person cannot be aroused by outside stimuli.
• concussion - "trauma-induced alteration in mental status that may or may not involve loss of consciousness" (Amer. Academy of Neurology's definition of concussion in Mihoces, 1999). This brief period of cerebral dysfunction due to head trauma usually lasts no more than five minutes. ("The Injured Brain," 1998)
• contusion of the brain - bruise, caused by the brain hitting against inside of skull. ("The Injured Brain," 1998)
• edema - abnormal accumulation of fluid in the tissue spaces such as the brain swelling after injury. This makes any brain functions difficult. . ("The Injured Brain," 1998)
• post-concussion syndrome - symptoms persist for days, weeks, or more [Mihoces, 1999]
• shearing - "the stretching and tearing of nerve fibers caused by the twisting of the brain inside the skull" ("The Injured Brain," 1998)

Prevention

• Wearing a helmet may help reduce the likelihood of memory loss resulting from brain injuries.
• Dive only in deep enough waters after adequate instruction in diving safety.
• Boxing - Stay out of the ring, for maximum protection! :-)