LONDON -- One in four professional footballers said they suffer symptoms of anxiety and depression in a new study into the sports largely unexplored "dark side" of mental illness. [url=http://www.cheapmiamijerseys.com/?tag=miami-ed-reed-college-jersey] Ed Reed College Jersey[/url] . The ment

LONDON -- One in four professional footballers said they suffer symptoms of anxiety and depression in a new study into the sports largely unexplored "dark side" of mental illness. Ed Reed College Jersey . The mental health of recently retired professional footballers was even more worrisome, with one in three reporting signs of anxiety and depression. Some 300 current and former professionals -- from the Netherlands, Major League Soccer, Scotland, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand -- took part in the study for the players union, FIFPro. While football can draw on reams of scientific study about players physical injuries, little research has previously been done into their mental health, and mental health problems have remained very much taboo in the sport, FIFPro chief medical officer Vincent Gouttebarge said. "There is definitely some dark side of professional football," he said in an interview. "We dont talk about mental health issues in football, or we didnt talk about this issue," he added. "Its quite a macho culture so people do not talk about it." Gouttebarge said the studys findings suggest that professional footballers are no less prone to mental illness than other younger people in the general population. He said that might surprise fans who believe footballers live comfortable, worry-free lives, with media attention often focusing on the wealth of the most successful players. "Contrary to what people think, professional footballers experience psychological problems just like other groups in the population," Gouttebarge said. Among the 180 active footballers who responded to the lengthy questionnaire, 10 per cent reported symptoms of distress, five per cent reported signs of burnout and three per cent said they suffered from low self-esteem. Nearly 20 per cent reported problems with alcohol, which Gouttebarge said could include binge drinking and regularly drinking too much, and seven per cent said they smoked. The 121 former professionals who responded on average had 12-year playing careers and have been retired for five years. Fifteen per cent showed signs of burnout and 18 per cent signs of distress. One in three reported drinking problems, 12 per cent smoked, and 39 per cent reported suffering from depression and anxiety. Gouttebarge said that could include worrying, mood swings, difficulties sleeping, feeling stressed, not being sociable or a combination of symptoms. "Mental illness seems to occur among former professional footballers more often than in current players, and more often than in other populations. Consequently, mental illness among former professional footballers cannot be underestimated and should be a subject of interest for all stakeholders in football," the study said. Retirement was "really a critical period," with players abruptly losing the structure of regular training and the support of being in a club, Gouttebarge said. "You have to find a new life," he said. "It can put you under a lot of stress." Long-term injuries and surgeries that take players out of the game and away from close, regular contact with teammates can also be factors in mental health problems. Being forced to stop playing professionally because of injury or because clubs wont offer another contract can be particularly hard to cope with, Gouttebarge noted. "This has been recognized in other sports as a huge cause of mental health issues," he said. "The guy who is willing to retire or to stop his career is really (in) a different kind of situation to the one who is forced to retire." He called the study "a good first step" toward identifying the scope of mental health issues in football. The survey is expanding to players in France and from French-speaking nations in Africa, with plans to also study players in Spanish-speaking countries and Japan, Gouttebarge said. Andre Johnson College Jersey . The 23-year-old restricted free agent appeared in all 48 games last season, finishing second among all Sabres skaters with 15 goals and 34 points. Brad Kaaya College Jersey . Johnny Manziel, college footballs most entertaining player with the reputation for pulling off magical plays, was selected with the No. http://www.cheapmiamijerseys.com/?tag=miami-reggie-wayne-college-jersey . "I never commented to anyone that I wanted out," he explained. "My heart is with this group and making the playoffs." Kesler added that the rumours are "completely false" that he asked to be traded - recently or ever.Each week, The Reporters put their thumbs out to the good and the bad in the world of sports. This week, they discuss Martin Brodeur, Erik Cordier, Johnny Manziel and the end of the Moore-Bertuzzi saga. Bruce Arthur, Toronto Star: My thumb is down to the inevitabilities of time, which brings us to Martin Brodeur. He has been a great goalie. He has had a marvellous career and right now, with training camp coming, hes 42, hes unemployed, his name isnt on any front burners and he been one of the worst goaltenders in the NHL over the past four seasons. Hes never allowed himself to believe that, though, even as New Jersey moved on. So here he is. Its a little sad, sure, but its his choice. Brodeur wont retire for some of the same reasons he was great: his deep need to play, to matter, to believe in himself. The reasons Marty Brodeur was great are the reasons hes waiting and wondering if this game has finally passed him by. Steve Simmons, Sun Media: My thumb is up to Erik Cordier, a career nobody, who made his major league debut this week with the San Francisco Giants and left those of us who saw it, gasping. After almost 10 years of kicking around the minors with four different organizations, Cordier entered the seventh inning of a loss to Colorado and began to throw. Hard. His first big league pitch came in at 100 miles per hour. He followed that up with 100, 101, 101, 100 and a strikeout of Drew Stubbs. Before he finished his hitless inning, Cordier had thrown 16 pitches clocked at 100 or more. To put his debut into some kind of perspective, consider this: 22 big league teams, including the Blue Jays, have noot thrown a single pitch that fast this season. Cheap Miami Gear. . Michael Farber, Sports Illustrated: My thumb is down to Johnny Manziel, a.k.a. Johnny Football, a.k.a. JFF, and now a.k.a. Johnny Cleveland. Manziels company has filed for its 10th trademark with the U.S. Patent and Trademark office, this time for the aforementioned Johnny Cleveland, which, if you think about it, is more flattering than, say, Johnny Clipboard. Now Shaquille ONeal had a slew of nicknames - the Big Aristotle, Shaq Fu - but these were mostly about a basketball player doing it for giggles, not a quarterback trying to laugh all the way to the bank. In his determined effort to expand his brand, the Browns rookie back-up might as well add another name to his burgeoning list: Johnny Trademark. Dave Hodge, TSN: My thumb is up to the settlement, finally made official this week, in the "so-called Moore-Bertuzzi" lawsuit. I know a trial would have been fascinating. It would have been a reporters dream. It might have changed the NHL in some way. It would have brought a verdict and a so-called "winner", though, hardly but particularly for the parties directly involved, it would have been an excruciating experience and no matter where your sentiments lie, we should all agree there has been too much suffering. What a settlement tells us is that both sides saw the need to minimize that suffering, notice I didnt say they could end it. No matter how much money was gained or saved in a settlement, less suffering and the absence of a trial made it the right ending to a sad story that everyone wishes had never happened. Authentic Nike Tampa Bay Buccaneers Jerseys Cheap Authentic Nike Tennessee Titans Jerseys Cheap Authentic Nike Washington Redskins Jerseys Cheap Authentic Nike Arizona Cardinals Jerseys Cheap Authentic Nike Denver Broncos Jerseys Cheap Authentic Nike Green Bay Packers Jerseys Cheap Authentic Nike Los Angeles Chargers Jerseys Cheap Authentic Nike New England Patriots Jerseys Cheap Authentic Nike Oakland Raiders Jerseys Cheap Authentic Nike Seattle Seahawks Jerseys Cheap Authentic Nike Carolina Panthers Jerseys Cheap Authentic Nike Cleveland Browns Jerseys Cheap Cheap Throwback Baseball Arizona Diamondbacks Jerseys Cheap Throwback Baseball Atlanta Braves Jerseys Cheap Throwback Baseball Baltimore Orioles Jerseys Cheap Throwback Baseball Boston Red Sox Jerseys Cheap Throwback Baseball Chicago Cubs Jerseys Cheap Throwback Baseball Chicago White Sox Jerseys Cheap Throwback Baseball Cincinnati Reds Jerseys Cheap Throwback Baseball Cleveland Indians Jerseys ' ' '