Medical problems later life from MMA

RedRaven

I was just browsing the web and found some articles on various MAs, now I will be honest as a kid I was a fan of WWE and I still admire them for their athletic abilities but my point is that I found a site that listed some of the wrestlers I used to watch as a kid and to my horror a lot of them had died due to a mix of heart attacks or depression related drug/alcohol over doses, alot of them were aged between 40 and 55, its common knowledge that steriods were widely used in wrestling which is most likely the cause, so my question is will we see this trend in a couple of years time time in the MMA scene due to drug use?

Mikel

Probably not, steroids are more common I would say in WWE.
The demands on the athletes are different, the wrestlers perform more often and have to keep working through a lot of injuries, addiction to painkillers might be common as in NFL.

While mma fighters keep going through injuries I think they can take a more sensible approach because they are not paid to show up every day.

I don't know if steroid use causes depression or the chris benoit type situation, maybe it's a cocktail of different things, maybe it's the lifestyle of always being on the road.

It is genuinely shocking how many of them are dead though.

Khannie

Have ye a link there lads? I used to watch the WWF when I was a kid. Hulk hogan, ultimate warrior etc.

dlofnep

Here is the list: http://prowrestling.about.com/od/whatsrealwhatsfake/a/wrestlersdeaths.htm

I think Wrestlers have a slightly more traumatic life than MMA competitors. Wrestlers are on the road most of the year, and survive on a cocktail of painkillers & cocaine for the pain and depression, along with roids to bulk up. All that adds up. Alot of the wrestlers died because of an overdose, or because their body just quit on them.

Nothingcompares

Uh oh! using prowrestling and mma in the same sentance! dave jones is going to hit the roof.

I think with regards to medical issues, MMA and ProWrestling are probably more different then they are similar. I would imagine a lot of the hardship associated with PW is the fact the guys have to keep up their image. A MMA fighter doesn't really have to walk around ripped when he's not in training but the body builder type wrestlers have to maintain that physique almost year round. Again, I'd imagine that means a lot of supplemental drug taking, strict dieting and some other measures that really won't do your body well in the long run. Unlike bodybuilders though, the wrestlers need to have a high athletic ability, like jumping off ropes and doing all these dangerous moves that could seriously hurt someone if not done properly.

Some wrestlers are in a show every week! Even the most active MMA fighters would fight less than 15 times a year. (the top guys 1-3 times even).

Raze_them_all

I could be wrong but wasn't there some medical report linking benoit's case to getting so many concussions throughout his career from all the unprotected chair shots in his ecw and wwe attitude era???

Khannie

Wow. That's some list.

Cutting weight might not be too good for you in the long run.

Raze_them_all

didn't 3 college wrestlers die from it last year??
Some of that list died of natural causes like cancer and what not

Fozzy

I don't know if any of you will be surprised by this or not, but practically all of the many MMA fighters who have done pro wrestling have said that pro wrestling is much harder on their bodies than MMA. In wrestling you're expected to work injured. Also, you can avoid damage in an MMA fight or training if you're good. You can't avoid damage in wrestling as hitting the mat hard is part of the job description

That list of wrestlers who died young is mostly due to the recreational drug and painkiller scene that nearly everybody was a part of back in the '80s and '90s. I'd be very hesitant to link many of the deaths to steroids. I believe that steroids have been listed as a cause of death in only three wrestler's death certificates

These days I would say that steroids are more common in MMA than pro wrestling, from the hard and the anecdotal evidence I've seen

Concussions may also be more prevalent in MMA, and that's where the real danger lies I think. There's been a lot of study recently into the effects of multiple concussions and what a concussion actually is. You don't have to be knocked out to suffer a concussion. And if you get a concussion while you're still recovering from one, that's when you can really get into trouble

We won't really know what sort of health problems MMA can cause in later life yet, but we'll be finding out in 10-20 years. I'm not too optimistic on this subject to be honest

Mikel

Fozzy wrote: »

These days I would say that steroids are more common in MMA than pro wrestling, from the hard and the anecdotal evidence I've seen

But wouldn't the workload and physiques of the wrestlers suggest the opposite?

Fozzy

Mikel wrote: »

But wouldn't the workload and physiques of the wrestlers suggest the opposite?

Depends who you're talking about. There's WWE wrestlers who aren't as defined as they used to be since WWE started their random drug testing. There's still guys beating the tests of course. Some of the WWE guys caught for steroids didn't have the physique that you'd associate with steroids either, so you can't really rely on that as evidence

In MMA you know the day that you're getting tested. You also know that if you cycle off of steroids a certain number of days in advance of the test, there's no way that you'll be caught. Steroids offer big gains in stamina, which can be used to train for longer and to enter a fight with better conditioning

Don't be naive when it comes to MMA and steroids. There's far more guys using steroids than are getting caught

EDIT: I should add in something about human growth hormone (HGH), as it's not exactly a steroid. At the moment there's no testing for it in MMA but all evidence points to it providing most of the benefits of steroids. And its long-term effects haven't been examined yet, so it may or may not cause health problems for users later in life

Raze_them_all

was there not like 10 wwe guys caught for getting hgh off the internet last year or something??

Fozzy

Raze_them_all wrote: »

was there not like 10 wwe guys caught for getting hgh off the internet last year or something??

Yeah. I think only about four or five of them were linked with HGH. The only reason they were caught was because the government had been investigating the site they got them from. MMA fighters don't have anything like that to fear

Raze_them_all

really....sean sherk and tim sylvia would say otherwise.

Fozzy

Raze_them_all wrote: »

really....sean sherk and tim sylvia would say otherwise.

No, I mean that MMA fighters don't have to fear getting caught buying stuff off the internet. The athletic commissions can't punish them for that, they can only punish them when they catch them with a banned substance inside them. And they can't catch them with HGH inside them because they can't test for it at the moment

Raze_them_all

ah ok sorry, Have they not recently started random testing now???

Mikel

Fozzy wrote: »

Depends who you're talking about. There's WWE wrestlers who aren't as defined as they used to be since WWE started their random drug testing. There's still guys beating the tests of course. Some of the WWE guys caught for steroids didn't have the physique that you'd associate with steroids either, so you can't really rely on that as evidence

Don't be naive when it comes to MMA and steroids. There's far more guys using steroids than are getting caught

I'm not saying there aren't steroids in mma, I'm just saying that physically they seem more likely candidates for use. Add in the weekly shows and it seems even more likely.

I'd also question whether WWE & co are serious about eliminating usage or whether it's a pr exercise.

Fozzy

Raze_them_all wrote: »

ah ok sorry, Have they not recently started random testing now???

Nevada have. But it's not really random. So far I think they've only tested Sherk, Penn and Ortiz, and they were all informed ahead of time that they'd be tested

Mikel wrote: »

I'm not saying there aren't steroids in mma, I'm just saying that physically they seem more likely candidates for use. Add in the weekly shows and it seems even more likely.

Physically pro wrestlers would benefit more from steroids. But in terms of strength, stamina and speed, MMA fighters would benefit more. Steroids aren't all about physique. Look at all the cyclists who've been caught for steroids

When I look at it, personally I see a much bigger advantage in taking steroids for MMA than for pro wrestling. Either way, there are steroids in MMA, but I wouldn't worry too much about it causing big health problems in the future

Mikel wrote: »

I'd also question whether WWE & co are serious about eliminating usage or whether it's a pr exercise.

Bit of both really

joepenguin

They compete like professional athletes but live like rockstars due to their scheduling, some of them perform several times per week.

amacachi

The guys at the top in both WWE and MMA have little to fear with steroids. Steroids are more than likely harmless when used sensibly. Most of the top guys will have doctors monitoring everything while they're on them. I can see why a few years back when less was known about cycling there would've been damage done.
I would say steroids are about as common in both. Steroids and other performance enhancers aren't just about size and appearance.

As was said, I'd be more worried about the mixing of recreational drugs and painkillers, and of course those concussions.

Dragan

If i'm a top MMA fighter who is inclined to stray onto the banned list then i am happily taking HGH over Steroids anyday.

The roids will add bulk which i simply may not need, this in turn will affect conditioning etc. I honestly find it hard to believe why any MMA fighter is caught for steroids other than they fact that they are cheap.

HGH is where all the benefits i would want lie.

As such, i think there a few of the fighters that are doing well out there at the moment who currently use HGH.

rovert

Dragan wrote: »

If i'm a top MMA fighter who is inclined to stray onto the banned list then i am happily taking HGH over Steroids anyday.

The roids will add bulk which i simply may not need, this in turn will affect conditioning etc. I honestly find it hard to believe why any MMA fighter is caught for steroids other than they fact that they are cheap.

HGH is where all the benefits i would want lie.

Great point

Dragan wrote: »

As such, i think there a few of the fighters that are doing well out there at the moment who currently use HGH.

One of which has developed a very large head.

Dragan

rovert wrote: »

One of which has developed a very large head.

And the other a very large gut.

Mikel

I seem to remember reading that someone's nickname was ironic due to his hgh use being common knowledge, maybe it's a bad idea to get
into a guessing game though.

rovert

Mikel wrote: »

I seem to remember reading that someone's nickname was ironic due to his hgh use being common knowledge, maybe it's a bad idea to get
into a guessing game though.

HGH = Testosterone replacement therapy

Hair loss can be side effect too.

Coconutty

Look. MMA fighter get hit less than boxers. If you count the hits in the head per match, it's less. Brokent joints are rare, so someone can't say that they will have joint problems. I say there are chances of medical problems, but less than in boxers, or wrestlers. Probably as much as American Football players.

Raze_them_all

Coconutty wrote: »

Look. MMA fighter get hit less than boxers. If you count the hits in the head per match, it's less. Brokent joints are rare, so someone can't say that they will have joint problems. I say there are chances of medical problems, but less than in boxers, or wrestlers. Probably as much as American Football players.

American footballers die something on average like 12years earlier than everyone else....

Mikel

Raze_them_all wrote: »

American footballers die something on average like 12years earlier than everyone else....

Troy Aikman once drove around town all night because he couldn't remember where he lived
Brett Favre is addicted to painkillers.......

Raze_them_all

yeah...they get shot with pain killers during games all through there career...they're probably the least healthy pro athletes in the world IMO

ryoishin

Joints would suffer because your using them, droping to your knees for take downs, slams, bad fall, snapping out punches without hitting anything, wear and tear but if your doing MA then your doing more wear and tear than the average couch potatoe.

Theres just more of a healthy culture withing the MA community so people do alot of maintance exercises.