Is Bigger Really Better? Obesity Among High School Football Players, Player Position, and Team Success

Abstract

Objective. American football is one of the most common high school sports in the United States. We examine obesity among high school football players, and variations based on positions, team division, and team success. Patients and methods. We used 2 data sets from the North Carolina High School Athletic Association (n = 2026) and MaxPreps (n = 6417). We examined body mass index, calculated using coach-reported height and weight, by player position, division, and success based on win–loss percentage. Results. Most players (62%) were skill players, with 35% linemen and 3% punters/kickers. Most skill players (62%) were healthy weight and 4% obese or morbidly obese. In contrast, only 8% of linemen were healthy weight, with 21% morbidly obese. Team success was correlated with size only for skill players. Conclusions. Obesity is a significant problem for high school football players. Pediatricians should consider the context of football playing in assessing long-term health risks for these young men.

Carrying the Weight: Athletics and Obesity in High School Football Players

“…However, a prior publication from our group suggests that increasing athlete BMI does not significantly improve team success. 8 Improved team success in high school football would be a small reward for accepting the well-documented risks of adolescent obesity, and without even this incentive, one is left only with the dangers.…”

“…5-7 A prior study from our group demonstrated a similar pattern among high school football players in the state of North Carolina, and Kropa et al again identified such findings in urban adolescents receiving pre-participation physical evaluations. 3,8 No studies yet have confirmed this finding to be consistent among high school football players nationwide, nor has the problem of obesity been compared across sports.…”

Body Size Changes Among National Collegiate Athletic Association New England Division III Football Players, 1956−2014: Comparison With Age-Matched Population Controls

“…[35][36][37] Height in adults cannot, in principle, be modified by exogenous factors such as training and diet. As such, the heights of tight ends and offensive and defensive linemen, which exceed the population mean by 3 in (7.6 cm) or more, are explained by selective recruiting of players with these height characteristics.…”

Editorial: Orthopaedic Surgeons Should Recommend That Children and Young Adults Not Play Tackle Football

“…The fitness argument is further undermined by preliminary evidence that obesity is more common in youth football players than in normative samples of age-, race-and sex-matched children [17]. While that study had some shortcomings, we believe its main message likely is correct given that the finding persists in more diverse populations of football players as they mature in that sport, through high school [25], college [30] and even at the professional level [4]. Other serious health risks appear in football players at unusually young ages; one study found metabolic syndrome in nearly 20% of collegiate football players [30], and studies on professionals and retired pros found even-more severe health problems [14,24,29], despite those athletes presumably having the best access to trainers, dietary advice, and the ability to focus full-time on physical fitness.…”