15 §TUDY 0? Tiffiig IsGFEVEGEWW AND MORBEDITY OF FQGTBALL AND EASKETBALL ATHLETES AT MECHZGAN SETATE UNEVERSJTY The“: {:09- 53‘s Dag?» as of M. A. MICHLA‘J STARE. 3T WERSITY Andrew Joseyh Hudec 1956 A STUDY OF THE LONGEVITY AND MORBIDITY 0F FOOTBALL AND BASKETBALL ATHLETES AT MICHIGAN STATE UNIVERSITY by ANDREW JOSEPH gupEC A THESIS Submitted to the College of Education of Michigan State University of Agriculture and Applied Science in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree 0! MASTER OF ARTS Department of Health, Physical Education, and Recreation 1956 ACKNOWLEDGMENT I wish to express my sincere gratitude to Dr. Henry J. Montoye for his aid and guidance throughout this study. A STUDY OF THE LONGEVITY AND MORBIDITY OF FOOTBALL AND BASKETBALL ATHLETES AT MICHIGAN STATE UNIVERSITY by ANDREW JOSEPH HUDEC AN ABSTRACT Submitted to the College of Education of Michigan State University of Agriculture and Applied Science in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of MASTER OF ARTS Department of Health, Physical Education, and Recreation Anproved ABSTRACT The purpose of this study is to compare the longevity, .morbidity, closely related areas of health, environment, economic and marital status, and other factors of varsity football and basketball athletes with a similar group of non-athletes. Many studies have been made in the past comparing the longevity of college athletes with the general pepulation. One of the earliest was conducted by Dr. J. E. Morgan in 1873 but it Was not until 1932, in a study by Dublin that a comparison of college athletes was made with college non- athletes. The only other comprehensive study was made by Rock in 1954. The Michigan State University football and basketball letter winners who competed before 1937 were the athletes selected. A stratified random sampling method was used in the selection of the non-athletes, so that if an athlete earned a major letter in 1908 as a saphomore the non-athlete control selected would also have been a sophomore in 1908. Questionnaires were mailed to 402 athletes and 402 non—athletes, along With a letter eXplaining the importance of the study. Two—hundred and fifteen athletes returned questionnaires (53.h8%) while two-hundred controls returned completed questionnaires (“9.75%). Information recorded on the questionnaires was both qualitative and quantitative. The qualitative data were My 2 analyzed by use of the Chi Square technique while the crit- ical ratio was used to determine the significance of differ- ence with the quantitative data. The following differences were statistically signi- ficant: 1. Football players were heavier than the non- athletes during their college days. 2. The percentage change in weight was less among the football players than among the non-athletes. 3. A greater percentage of athletes are married than non-athletesr h. A greater number of football and basketball players use alcoholic beverages than do the non-athletes. 5. More football and basketball players have ac- quired the smoking habit than have the non-athletes. Although not statistically significant the following differences were found: 1. The mean age at death favored the football ath- letes by 2.91 years over the non-athletes. 2. There were more deaths among the non-athletes than among the athletes. 3. Of the known causes of death thirteen non—athletes and twelve athletes died of heart disease. a. Non-athletes gained more weight since leaving college than did the football players. 5. Basketball players gained more weight since leaving college than did the non-athletes. 6. A greater percentage of the football and basket- ball athletes have been in the Armed forces than have the non—athletes. \ 7. The average number of years spent in the Armed forces favored the football players over the non-athletes. 8. More football players enjoyed a satisfactory economic status during college than did the non-athletes, while the reverse was true in regard to the basketball players. . | 9. The percentage of football and basketball players enjoying a satisfactory economic status after leaving college as compared with the non~athletes was practically identical. lO. Childhood diseases are more prevalent among the non-athletes‘ 11. Mean age at death of the maternal and paternal grandparents favored the athletes. 12.. Athletes came from larger families than did the non-athletes" 13. A greater percentage of athletes thought athletics beneficial than did the non-athletes\ ...___.——~ TABLE OF CONTENTS CHAPTER I. THE PROBLEM. Introduction . Statement of the problem. . Importance of the study . Limitations . . II. METHODS OF PROCEDURE. Introduction. . . Selection of subjects. . . Techniques of mailing. Percentage of returns. Tabulation of results. . . Statistical analysis of data III. REVIEW OF LITERATURE. IV. RESULTS AND ANALYSIS OF DATA . V. SUMMARY, CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS . Summary 0 o o 0 Conclusions . . . Recommendations. y BIBLIOGRAPHY. . . . . . ; APPENDICES . . . . PAGE \OQNIVMKJNH ~a «q -q 0\ ox cr .p H +4 >4 H Kn 1v 0 a) «a ~q N O) A} r4 H TABLE I. II. III. IV. VI. VII. VIII. IX. X. XI. XII. XIII. XIV. LIST OF TABLES PAGE Comparison of Actual and Expected Deaths Among the Yale University Athletes. . . . . . . Causes of Death of Fifty-Eight Athletes. . . . Deaths Among Yale Graduates, as Compared With EXpected Deaths of American Men's Ultimate Table, 1905-1923. . . . . . . . . . . Causes of Death of the "Y" Men. . . . . . . Comparison of Cricketers With the General Male Population. . . . . . . . . . . . . Comparison of Amateurs and Professionals . . . Per Cent Actual of EXpected Deaths According to American Men's Table . . . . . . . . . Per Cent Actual of EXpected Deaths According to 'American Men's Table . . . . . . . . . Causes of Death of 222 Sportsmen and Gymnasts. . EXpectation of Life in Years . . . . . . . Longevity of Oarsmen Compared to the Insurance Population. . . . . . . . . . . . . Causes of Death of 100 Former Soccer Players . . Longevity of Athletes and Non-Athletes . . . . Total Numbers Under Investigation. . . . . . Comparison of Different Sporting Groups Excluding Deaths Due to War and Accidents. . . . . . Mean Age of the Deceased Athletes in Comparison With the Non—Athletes . . . . . . . . . 17 18 18 19 21 23 24 27 30 33 3b 38 39 ul TABLE XVII. XVIII. XIX. XX. XXII. XXIII. XXIV. XXV. Causes of Death Among Athletes in Comparison With the Non—Athletes. . . . . . . . A Percentage Comparison of the Present State of Health of the Athletes and Non-Athletes. Comparison of the Mean Weight in College. Change in Weight, and Percentage Change in Weight of the Football Athletes and Non- Athletes . . . . . . . . . . . . Comparison of the Mean Weight in College, Change in Weight, and Percentage Change in Weight of the Basketball Players and Non- Athletes . . . . . . . . . . . . Comparison of the Mean Weight in College, Change in Weight, and Percentage Change in Weight of the Total Athletes and Non-Athletes. Comparison of the Marital Status of the Living and Deceased Athletes With the Non-Athletes Comparison of the Military Status of the Athletes With the Non-Athletes. . . . . Types of Physical Activity Engaged in While in the Service by the Football and Basketball Players in Comparison With the Non-Athletes Comparison of the Number of Years in Service of the Football and Basketball Players With the Non-Athletes o o o o e o o 0 PAGE 43 43 an “5 A6 1+? 97 -.~._.- “9 vi TABLE PAGE XXVI. Comparison of the Economic Status During and After College Days of the Athletes With the Non-Athletes. . . . . . . . . . 50 XXVII. Indication of Number of Hours Spent Daily on Vocational and Avocational Activities in Ten Year Intervals of Football Players as Compared With the Non-Athletes . . . . . 51 XXVIII. Indication of Number of Hours Spent Daily on Vocational and Avocational Activities in Ten Year Intervals of Basketball Players as Compared With the Non-Athletes . . . . 52 XXIX. Indication of Percentage of Alcohol Drinkers Among the Athletes as Compared With the Non- Athletes . . . . . . . . . . . . 53 XXX. Percentage of Tobacco Users Among the Athletes as Compared With the Non-Athletes . . . . 55 XXXI. Types of Tobacco Users (Percentage—Wise) Among the Athletes as Compared With the Non- Athletes . . . . . . . . . . . . 55 XXXII. Percentage of Athletes Having Had Childhood Diseases in Comparison with the Non-Athletes 56 XXXIII. Number and Mean Age of Athletes Contracting Diseases in Later Life as Compared With the Non-Athletes. . . . . . . . . . . 57 XXXIV. Comparison of the Ages of the Deceased Parents and Grandparents of the Athletes and the Non— Athletes . . . . . . . . . . . . 58 vii TABLE PAGE XXXV. CompariSOn of Number of Brothers and Sisters, Living and Deceased of the Football Players and Non-Athletes . . . . . . . . . . 59 XXXVI. Comparison of Number of Brothers and Sisters, Living and Deceased, of the Basketball Players and Non-Athletes . . . . . . . . . . 59 XXXVII. Comparison of Number of Brothers and Sisters, Living and Deceased, of Total Athletes and Non-Athletes . . . . . . . . . . . 59 XXXVIII. Causes of Death for Parents of the Athletes as Compared With the Non—Athletes . . . . 61 XXXIX. Causes of Death for Maternal Grandparents of the Athletes as Compared With the Non- Athletes. . . .. . . . . . . . . . 62 XL. Causes of Death for the Paternal Grandparents of the Athletes as Compared With the Non- Athletes. . . . . . . . . . . . . 63 XLI. Medical Ailments of the Parents (Living Only) of Athletes as Compared With Non-Athletes. . 6b XLII. Medical Ailments of the Athletes (Living Only) as Compared With the Non—Athletes . . . . 65 XLIII. Opinions of Athletes and Non-Athletes as to Whether Athletes are Beneficial or Harmful to the Participants . . . . . . . . . 66 CHAPTER I THE PROBLEM Introductigg From the earliest times of man there has been a great deal of controversy over the effect that strenuous exercise might have on the well~being of an individual, not necessar- ily at the time during which it is being carried on, but rather in the future. Many peeple believe that athletes, in spite of their excellent physique, tend to exhaust themselves by the phy- sical efforts they have put forth over a period of time, and thereby tend to die at a relatively young age. In America at the present time there is a great ex- _pansion program being carried on in athletics, not only on the college level but also on the lower grade levels of the elementary schools. On the college level particular emphasis is being placed on the deve10pment of individual skill, team skill, and specialized athletes. Leading educators throughout the country are now con— _fronted with the problem of determining the level at which controlled athletics should be introduced. Should athletics start at the elementary school level, the Junior high school level, or not until the senior high school level? Educators are also deeply interested in the type of equipment that should be used, and the amount of money that should be spent on athletic programs and building structures. 2 True, these are all important questions which must be considered in developing an athletic program. However, the most important question that must be answered in connection with athletics is the effect of athletics on the men who are competing in the various sports. If this question were to be answered thoroughly and decisively, educators could seek to build a broad extensive program of athletics on any school level without fear of arousing the wrath of the public in general and the parents in particular who are clamoring to hear the answers as to whether athletics are beneficial or harmful to the partici- pants. The best possible method of findingam answer to this problem is through research. It is hoped that this thesis, “A Study of the Longevity and Morbidity of Football and Basketball Athletes at Michigan State University,“ will serve as a means of determining what effect, if any, exer- cise has had on the individuals concerned. Statement of the Problem The purpose of this study is to compare the longevity, morbidity, closely related areas of health, environment, economic, and marital status, and other factors of varsity basketball and football athletes with a similar group of non-athletes. ~The Michigan State University football and basketball letter winners were selected from those athletes competing 3 in these sports from the year 1937 back to the year that the sport was first inaugurated at this institution, football in the year 1888, and basketball in the year 1899. The non-athletes that are included in this study were selected from the registration records of Michigan State University who attended this institution during the years that the athletes attended. Importance of the Study There are many advocates and critics to be found dis- cussing the effects of athletics on the athlete that is participating. Many claim that athletic sports tend tobuild both character and body, thereby adding to the length oflife of the individual. Many people recall that certain athletes have lived to ripe old ages. Immediately there is a wild cry from the critics saying that serious injury, and on some occasions even death, has befallen athletes while still in college. These incidents of serious injury or death receive much more attention that do the statements attesting the fact that an athlete has now reached his seventy-fifth birth- day in Splendid health. Controversy alone on the subject is not the answer. If we are to answer the questions confronting us as to whether athletics are beneficial or detrimental to the par- ticipant, it will not be done by discussion but rather in a comparative study of the longevity and morbidity of ath- letes and non-athletes who have attended various institutions of learning during a comparatively similar period of time. 4 Phi Epsilon Kappa, a professional physical education fraternity, has recognized the need for this type of study, and it has contacted leading universities throughout the country invoking their aid in helping to conduct similar investigations of this type. Over the past few years much more emphasis is being placed on all sports. The result is that coaches throughout the country are seeking to develop athletic talent at an early age with an eye on this talent as being needed in the near future. The findings of this study can be of great aid in de— termining the value of this type of program. It can serve as a means of producing evidence as to the effects of ath- letics on an individual. With this evidence on hand admin- istrators, educators, coaches, athletes, and the public in general can determine just what must be done to make athle- tics beneficial to all concerned. If evidence gathered is found to be detrimental then this study can serve as a means to guide future program planning so as to do away with the detrimental factors involved. The public is constantly clamoring for a type of athletic program that will be without serious injuries to the participants. The results of this study and similar in- vestigations will tend to give a little more insight into the problems of athletic programs. Most important, it is hoped that the evidence found in this type of research will do away with the athletic programs that are found to be truly harmful, and to still biased criticism of athletic programs that are actually found to be beneficial to the participants on the whole. _imit§ticns 1. Due to the wide geographical distribution of the athletes and non-athletes it was impossible to speak to each individual personally, therefore, a questionnaire had to be used and in this type of data bias is thought to play a major part in the answering of some individuals. 2. A committee composed of members of the Phi Epsilon Kappa fraternity were selected to devise a questionnaire that would include the environmental, health, economic, and medi- cal factors as well as smoking and drinking habits, and hereditary backgrounds of the athletes and non-athletes. In a few cases the questions asked are too vague. 3. Many of the athletes and non-athletes had not notified the college alumni relations office of changes in their addresses, therefore, it was impossible to secure any information on many of the individuals in this study. 1+. Athletes and non-athletes were selected on a random stratified basis and thereby influenced by different environ- mental conditions, health procedure, and training programs. It is felt that this influence could have contrasting results as compared with similar types of studies that were conducted in other parts of the world. 5. In the process of mailing questionnaires and follow-up letters, which resulted in the mailing of approximately fifteen hundred enveIOpes and letters, it is feasible to assume that in some instances letters were mail- ed with incorrect addresses. It is also likely that in some cases letters were not forwarded from an obsolete ad- dress to a more recent address due to the fact that people may have thought that the letter was unimportant. 6. As many of the athletes and non-athletes served in World War I and II, it is believed that the rigors of War and the environmental conditions of foreign countries could have had some bearing on the longevity and morbidity of cer- tain individuals. 7. Over the past years there has been a distinct change in the policies of the administrators toward the training and program planning of athletics. This may have an affect on the results of this study. ‘ 8. The reliability of the answers on a questionnaire type of study is limited, and it is felt that a duplicate questionnaire should have been mailed to persons returning the first questionnaire. CHAPTER'II METHODS OF PROCEDURE Introductigp_ Many studies have been completed in all parts of the world dealing with the effects of athletic competition on the life span and the health of the individual participants. In securing the data for these studies many different tech- niques have been used over the years. This chapter will deal with the techniques used in compiling data for this study. It deals with the selection of subjects, devising of the questionnaire, mailing method of the questionnaires and follow-up letters, tabulation of the data and the sta- tistical methods used in the computation of these data. Selection of Subjects Atglgggg, The football and basketball athletes all earned a major letter on either the football or the basket- ball team, or in some cases both the football and basketball teams of Michigan Agricultural College or Michigan State Univ- ersity' as it later became known. The records bearing the names of these letter winners are kept in bound books, filed in the ticket offices at Jenison Field House. From these books the following information was obtained: (1) the sport at which he had earned his major letter and the year or years he had earned this letter, (2) the athletes' addresses and the last known date of these addresses, (3) the date of graduation or the date of departure of the athlete from school, (u) the position or positions that the athlete played in his particular sport or sports, and (5) the student standings such as freshman, sophmore, junior, or senior years, during which he earned his major letter. The names of the athletes were selected on the basis of the first year that the athlete earned his major letter and non-athletes were selected for the same years. Non-Athletes. A comparable number of non—athletes were selected from the registration files of the college ad- ministration offices. These names were taken from the old student directories. A student directory has been made for each year since the founding of the college. A stratified random sampling was used in the selection of non-athletes. For example, if an athlete had earned a major letter in the year 1908 as a junior, the non-athlete selected would also be a junior in the year 1908. In selecting the non—athletes from the student directories the tenth name on the page was used. If that name happened to be a girl's name, the name of the next male non-athlete was selected. A check mark or initials were then placed beside this name so that other members involved in the study of Longevity and Morbidity of athletes of other sports at Michigan State College would not select the identical name. In this manner a different con- trol is being used for each sport. When all the names of the athletes and non—athletes had been selected and their addresses found, then all the available information Was placed on three by five cards.T%888 were filed alphabetically in separate files of athletes or controls so that in the process of mailing and follow~up it would be easier to deal with the returns. Techniques of Mailing When the selection of all athletes and non-athletes names was completed, it was then necessary to record their addresses. These were recorded from the Alumni Relations Office of Michigan State University. Here a running active file is kept on all students who have enrolled at Michigan State University. The alumni records indicated the last known addresses of the athletes or controls and it also spec- ified at what date this address was known. In cases where the athlete or control had mOVed from one place to another and left no forwarding address, the last known address was marked on the files with the words "not there” shown in parenthesis beside the address. Regardless of this fact these addresses were still taken to be used in this study with the hope that in some instances the mail department might be able to locate the present address of the individ- .ual concerned and thereby increasing our percentage of returns. When all the addresses were selected, the names and addresses of all the controls and athletes were typed on lo envelOpes, which contained a questionnaire (Appendix B or A)and a letter explaining the importance of this study.(Appendix C). A stamped return envelope was also sent along in this letter. "Please Forward“ was stamped in the lower left hand corner of each envelOpe mailed so that the postman would make in- quiries as to any forwarding address that may have been left by the person involved in the study. As the questionnaires were returned they were placed alphabetically into separate filing boxes. One of these con~ tained the returns of completed questionnaires while another contained the letters that were returned by the post offices because the person to whom the letter was addressed could not be located. On these the addresses were rechecked to see if there had been a typing error or whether the address was c0pied incorrectly. After checking these over thoroughly, those that were found to be in error were then retyped and then sent out once again. Four weeks following the first mailing of the ques- tionnaires, a follow-up letter (Appendix D), was sent to all persons not having returned a questionnaire or Whose envelope had not been returned by the postal authorities. Here again the letter stated the influence this study would have on athletic programs and that their complete question- naires had not been received. This letter brought back a fairly good response with many stating that they had mis— placed the original questionnaire and that, if another were sent, they would promptly return the completed questionnaire. 11 Two weeks after the first follow-up letter was sent out still another follow-up letter (Appendix E), again stating the importance of the study and that as yet their questionnaires had not been received. Few returns were re— ceived in response to this letter. Percentage of Returns Of the total athletes' questionnaires mailed, which numbered #02, 215 completed questionnaires were returned which was a percentage of 53.h8. The number of athletes that the postal departments were unable to locate numbered seventy-five and if this number were subtracted from the original number of questionnaires sent the percentage of returns is 65.75. Of a similar number of non-athlete questionnaires mailed, there were 200 completed questionnaires which was a percentage of ”9,75. The number of non—athletes that the postal departments were unable to locate numbered fifty- eight, and if this number were subtracted from the original number sent the percentage is 58.1b. Tabulation of Results When a sufficient amount of time had elapsed after the mailing of the second follow-up letter and when ques- tionnaires were no longer being returned, all questionnaires on hand were alphabetized and then numbered so they could be readily identified. It had been decided that all of the 12 information on the questionnaires would be placed on Inter- national Business Machine (I.B.M.) cards. This necessitated the devising of a coding system (Appendix F) so that all the information on the questionnaires could be punched on I.B.M. cards. Each athlete and control had information on three separate I.B.M. cards with two of the cards containing eighty items and the thirdtnnLthirty—four. With the use of I.B.M. cards it was felt that many more comparisons could be made within the study. Statistiggl Analysis of Dag; Since the information recorded on the questionnaires was both Qualitative and quantatative, it was necessary to use different methods of analyzing the data. On the Quaéigtative data the critical ratio was used as a measure of significance. This is a ratio between the differences of the athletes and non-athletes, divided by the standard error of that differ- ence. The qualitative data were analyzed by use of the Chi— Square techniQue. The results of these statistical methods employed are shown in the chapter on results. CHAPTER III REVIEW OF LITERATURE Since early biblical times men have been confronted with the problem of what effect strenuous exercise has on the health of the individual. Arguments, pro and con, are continually being waged as to whether the athleteiiaaffected by the exercise program in which he is engaged. Some auth- orities claim that during training there is little effect on the athlete, but that in later years there is a harmful ef- fect that has been brought about by the strenuous condition- ing program. Others claim that harmful effects are brought on from the start when participating in any strenuous pro- gram of exercise. Still others voice the opinion that the life span of the athlete is shortened considerably in com- parison with the non-athlete because of his extensive and vigorous training program. However, these are usually only opinions, and the only way that a definite answer or answers can be made known is to delve into a systematic comparison of athletes and non-athletes and determining in this way just what harmful effects, if any, a strenuous training program has on the individuals concerned. One of the earliest studies was conducted in 1873 by Dr. J. E. Morgan.l Dr. Morgan investigated 29M oarsmen who 1John E. Morgan, “Critical Inquiry into the After-~ Health of the Men Who Rowed in the Oxford and Cambridge Boat Race from the Year 1829-1859," University 0ars,p. 300, 1873, cited by Peter Karpovich, "Longevity and Athletics," Research Quarterly, Vol. 12, (May 1941). pp. “SI-“55. 1h had rowed in the Oxford-Cambridge boat races between years 1829 to 1859. He compared these oarsmen, in terms of long~ evity, with Englishmen as shown in the British insurance tables, and he found that the athletes lived on the average two years longer. This would tend to illustrate that there are definitely no harmful effects derived from a strenuous exercise program, but critics quickly point out that the athletes engaging in the Oxford-Cambridge races were prima- rily a select group of individuals and that the comparison with the mortality of the general p0pulation could not be justified. In 1904 a study by George L. Meylanz appeared in the Harvard Graduates Magazine. Meyland selected oarsmen who rowed from 1852 to 1892, choosing rowing primarily because he believed it was a very strenuous sport. He intended to give each living former athlete a personal physical examina- tion, but, in many instances probably due to geographical distribution, this could not be done; therefore, Meylan had a medical doctor examine the athlete. Involved in this study were 152 oarsmen and of these 120 were living in June, 1903. Of the thirty-two deceased, twenty-four died of dis- ease and the other eight were killed--six in the Civil War and two by accidental deaths. Accurate information on 2George L. Meylan, "Harvard University Oarsmen," .flarvard Graduates Magazine, 9: 115-12“, March, 190“. 15 fourteen out of the twenty-four oarsmen who died of disease brought out the fact that engaging in rowing had nothing whatsoever to do with their deaths and information from fel- low oarsmen concerning the other ten failed to show that any of these were injured by rowing. In comparing the Harvard oarsmen with the healthy men of the life insurance tables (American Experience Table of Mortality), Meylan found that the athletes exceed the pre- dicted longevity by 2.88 years and 5.09 years if we add the years which the men who died accidentally were eXpected to live. Meylan was the first to report on the causes of death among the athletes. Meylan concluded the following: 1. That college athletes do not die young, nor do college athletes die more often of heart disease or consump- tion as is so often asserted. 2. That the hard training and racing involved in college rowing does not exhaust the mental and physical energy of the oarsmen. 3. That the health and vigor of the oarsmen is so far above the average that, if rowing has any effect on health, the effect cannot be otherwise but beneficial. Again this study was critized, as was Morgan's, because of the select group of athletes. 16 Anderson3, in 1916, published the results of his study made on former Yale athletes who had won the "Y" or its equivalent. In all there were 808 athletes consisting of 171 crew members, 148 basketball players, 213 football players and 276 track men, who participated in these various sports during the years between 1855 to 1905. Among these athletes fifty-eight deaths were recorded. A condensed table showing the number of deaths (58) among the Yale ath- letes is shown on the following page. From these results it was estimated that the letter winners at Yale University lived longer than the pepulation from which the insurance mortality tables are made. Once again the same criticisms were made of Anderson's study as had been made of Morgan's and Meylan's studies. The next study to appear was in 1926 and this was by James C. Greenway, M. D., and Ira V. Hiscock, Assistant Professor of Public Health? Again Yale athletes were used; however, only those who had earned a letter since 1904 were used thus excluding the group previously reported on by Anderson. A summary of the results of this study is illus— trated in Table III. 3William G. Anderson, "Further Studies in the Longe- vity of Yale Athletes," Mind and Body, 23: 7h7-378, Decem- ber, 1916. “James 0. Greenway and Ira V. 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Wakefield15 compared the longevity of high school backetball tournament players from 1911 to 1935 with the United States life tables pub- lished by the Bureau of Census. Wakefield investigated 2,919 boys who played during the twenty-five year period. The names and dates of birth of the men were obtained from the Indiana High School Ath- letic Association. Causes of death were obtained from of- ficial sources such as State Boards of Health, County Boards of Health, Cemetery Records, and Records of Morticians. Among the 2,919 basketball players there were 123 actual deaths and 181.1 expected deaths with a ratio of 67.9% which showed an advantage of 32.1% in favor of the basketball players. Wakefield also took into consideration those players who participated in three games in one day, and of these 379 there were seventeen actual and 24.5 eXpected deaths with a ratio of 69.4% as compared to 67.9% or the entire group. With.re8pect to age at the time of playing, the ratio of actual to expected deaths for the young players (14, 15, and 16) was 54.22% while the ratio for the older group (18, 19, and 20) was 78.9% which would indicate that mortality was more favorable to the younger than to the older players. 15Mark C. Wakefield, “A Study of Mortality Among the Men Who Have Played in the Indiana High School State Final Basketball Tournaments," Research Quarterly, 15: 2-11, 1944. 36 When all regulars were studied along with all substi- tutes, a ratio of 79.4% was found for regulars and 49.3% for substitutes indicating that the mortality rate was more favorable to the men who were Substitutes than to the men who were considered regulars. Wakefield classified causes of death under four prin- cipal headings: (1) External violence, (2) Tuberculosis (all kinds), (3) Cardiovasculax'renaldiseases, and (4) Pneu- monia and Influenza. He found that the most significant cause of death among basketball players was due to external violence with 34% of all deaths among basketball players due to accidents and suicides, as compared with 17.3% for the State of Indiana. Among the athletes seventeen deaths or 13.8% were due to tuberculosis compared to 20.9% for the State of Indiana. Cardiovascular renal diseases accounted for 16.3% (twenty) of the deaths of basketball players as compared to 13.3% for the State of Indiana. Thirteen, or 10.5% of the deaths among athletes resulted from pneumonia and influenza as compared to 11.4% for the State of Indiana. Wakefield concluded that basketball playing (a stren- uous Sport) had no effect on the mortality of the partici- pating players, but again there are limitations in this study: such as, many of the boys who did participate in these basketball tournaments could not be traced, and, once again, the young athletes were compared with the general population. 37 16 delved into an investi— In 1952 Professor L. Schmid gation of 400 former athletes of Czechoslovakia to determine the ages of death of these athletes. Information was secured by Schmid in correspondence with relatives of the deceased athletes, hospital archives, and physicians records. Schmid excluded deaths due to the First and Second World Wars. The ages of death for the various sports are as follows: Cyclists . . . . . . . . . . 64.83 Competitors in apparatus work . . . 58.53 Oarsmen . . . . . . . . . . 54.66 Swimmers . . . . . . . . . . 53.67 Track and Field Athletes . . . . . 52.50 Football playerS. . . . . . . . 50.93 Tennis Players . . . . . . . . 50.64 Heavy-Weight Athletes . . . . . . 46.84 The mean age for the entire group Was 54.72. Schmid also made a comparison of the mean age of ath- letes with the mean age of non—athletes and the results are illustrated in Table XIII. Schmid also upheld the belief that marriage has an influence on the longevity of the individuals since the mean age of the married athlete was 57.15 years while the unmarried athlete had a mean age of 42.17. 16L. Schmid. “How Long the Sportsmen Live," Sport and Health (0810, Norway: Royal Norwegian Ministry of Education, 1952) pp. 100-109. 38 TABLE XIII LONGEVITY or ATHLETES AND NON-ATHLETES (Schmid, 1952) m Mean A e of Mean Age of Year Of Birth Athletes Years) Non-Athletes (Years) 1861—1870 58.24 66.90 1871-1880 60.28 61.72 The latest study on the longevity of athletes (and many peOple claim it to be one of the best) was reported by Dr. Alan Rookl7 in 1954. He too compared the athletes with their fellow classmates and "intellectuals" as had Dublin in his study of 1934. Dr. Rook obtained the information for this investi- gation from the Alumni Cantabrigienses (completed in 1953) which is a biographical list of all known students, gradu- ates, and holders of office at Cambridge University from the earliest times until 1900. The information contained in the Cantabrigienses included date of birth, University distinc— tions (sporting and academic). follow up notes after leaving college, and, when deceased, the date of death. Rock's selection of individuals was limited to men who, during a certain period, had represented Cambridge Univ— erSity in their contests with Oxford University at rowing, ———v——— 17Alan Book, "An Investigation into the Longevity of Cambridge Sportsmen," British Medical Journal, No.4865, 773- 777. April, 1954. 39 cricket, rugby, football, and certain branches of athletics, called the Sportsmen group. He then compared them with a control group of men who had been at the same universities during a similar period of time. In Table XIV are the total numbers that were included in Rock's investigation. TABLE XIV TOTAL NUMBERS UNDER INVESTIGATION (Rock, 1954) Group of Information Sportsmen No. Complete Incomplete Dead Alive Athletes 252 221 31 206 15 Cricketers 187 177 10 162 15 Rowing Men 178 171 7 155 16 Rugby Foot- ballers 217 203 14 180 23 Total 834 772 62 703 69 Controls Intellectuals 382 374 8 332 42 Random Group 379 336 43 293 43 Total 761 710 51 625 85 ~Grand Total 1595 1482 113 1328 154 In regard to longevity, a brief summary of the results is presented in Table XV. 40 L1 L4) II 1" I “I He.ee ms.ao sm.me mo.eo na.mo as.eo asses pm om< owon>< Non mmm mam aha was new snows nose cfi.oz mm mm ma an an a om mm mm Hm mm as be no Hmm mea ama Hma mma Nea om an: eon men men men men me new mmm 3mm am: emm mom on mma amp ewe one one who no ass She one mme “be nee so Ham amp :nm ems Nam amp mm mwm new mam Ham new ppm on Cam mam mam mwm Nam mmw m: and mam one one was owe on ads one bed one and mad mm mom see was mme mam was on ems mam oooa oooa mom Hem mm oooa oooa coca oooa oooa oooa om namepooaaoucH aopccm mamaamnpoom hnwsm whosom whopoxoaho mouca£p< ow< ow< seem as nho>u>psm no aonasz Lemma .aoomv mezmnHoos mz<_ms: 09 was smegma szhnzaoxm maaome szHemoam azmmmaaHs do zomHmsazoo >x mamapmoman was mecca: 0H NH ma m d m HH 5 managemcm one mapdnocoam .mscosaucH on NN me an as a am am acesoaaa assom use amazomm> .pamom om ma ma mm m 0H NH ma wheeze one masocmo H m o m o H o N “needs Haev mamoasoaopse nonpwh umspoz seepsa tarps: senses tosses tosses torso: Spoon no momsmo oesoaepsummm assesses Hence Hasnsoaosm assesses 'HHI emmemqmedlzoz mme mEHB nmmdmzoo m4 mmem4m84 Ema k0 mezmmdm mom maXKX mqmHpmowHQ use mEOOHD m N a N N o N N choe:mcm can mHanocoMm.muco5HucH 0H NH 0H 3H m a :H OH mommmmHQ Hmcom cam desomm> .phdom m 0H 0 m o o o m maofise one masocmo H N H m o o H m AmczHM HHHpmmen one mEOOH: w m w n m N m m choezecm one meHnocoam.mNc03Hth 0N nH nN :H m N 0N NH monsomHn Hscom dam hmHsomm>.phmmm o m m m N N m H mAOESB use mamocmo m o m N o H m H AoccHx HHsv mHmOHsannse panama scene: menace nonpoz sonata segue: stench amnpoz upcssw necsam upcsao sparse seesaw icccaw seesaw Iceman mason he momzso wepoH£pHpmoan use mHOOHD H o N N H H H H eHmossoem one meHnozohm .mucoaHHCH 0 HH n NH N N m 0H nonsean Hesom use asHSOmm> .uaeom H o H N H N o 0 cheese use masocmo o o o o o o o o HmocHx HHHV III} tosses sons mopOH£uHAV mezmmdm mme ho mazmzHHd AHpmoan use mHOOHD choaSOem one mHanocoam .mucosHNCH mommomHn Hmnom cam adeomm> .pammm maoese one mucocmo AmecHx HH4V mHNOHSOHNQDB apsoaHH< HsoHcsz ammaazoo ms Hwaza ozH>HHv mmemHmee age so mezmzHH< H