Athletes continue to capture our attention despite the COVID-19 pandemic. They were active in the 2020 social movements, the elections and many chose to play this season despite quarantine restrictions. But the pandemic also raised questions about college and profession athletes overall health. A multidisciplinary team at Harvard Medical School is in a multi year partnership with retired players to help understand how their bodies are affected by their careers, particularly in the NFL. The Harvard website posted the results of their studies. Surprisingly, some of the health studies show outcome disparities for retired players that are similar to those more generally found in the Black community.
We talk with Dr. Herman Taylor and Dr. Ross ZaFonte about the inspiration for the study and what they hope to accomplish by working in this unique partnership with retired NFL players.