Head Butt? Careful -- Who's The Head And Who's The Butt?
Posted: Friday, September 30, 2011
by Octavia Hansen
Octavia Hansen
We've all seen television and movies where some mean guy head butts some other guy. It looks tough and nobody cries when they do it. Must be okay, right? WRONG! Don't do this. This is a fantasy thing, same way a fight will last a hour and everyone walks away okay, or someone walks away from a car crash, not wearing a seat belt. A lot of things look tough, and it looks like you can do it . . . but don't. Just because you have a head, you shouldn't become a butt!
Muskox and big horn sheep are designed to withstand massive and multiple head butts. The top of their heads are structured the way any helmet works -- hard shell on the outside with a spongy, padded, area underneath, to protect the brain and spinal column. They also have extra material and fluid to protect the brain. Shame they don't use it improve themselves rather than bang their heads together. Most animals, if they attempted a head butt would either knock themselves out or cause irreparable damage. Just like some men.
Rams use the head butt as a show of male prowess for the ladies. It's the strongest of the species that breeds, not the smartest. Other horned animals also use this technique either in mating or defense. It works for them, for a while. Remember, nothing grows old in the wild. This is just one more thing they do that reinforces that.
Head butts can sometimes be seen used in sports. It's okay in soccer if it's used on the ball, anything else is not allowed. It will get a yellow card at least, a red card and a three game suspension the last time it was used at the 2006 FIFA World Cup. You can catch it on You Tube somewhere, some player head butting another player's chest. It's mean. It's petty. Athletes used to be role models, fair play and have higher moral standards. Yea, that went out the window when the million dollar contracts came into play. Now they are just spoiled kids, leaving a bad influence wherever they go.
Even in play, head butts with helmets still aren't a good idea. Your head may be okay but it weakens the helmet. That crashing effect can cause a crack in the surface of the helmet that will splinter on the next impact. Or it compresses and damages the cushioning material under the surface of the helmet, again, weakening the overall protection it's supposed to give the wearer.
Doesn't matter if you're wearing a hat, have a lot of hair or are just doing it for fun, head butts are not for play. Forehead to forehead is the worst, both skulls get the full force of the crash. It is painful and dangerous to both parties. Going for the nose can be especially destructive. Also, the cheek bone is not as sturdy as the cranium, same with the bone around the eye socket and the chin. Even butting into the mouth is risky -- teeth are sharp, get sharper when broken and can cause more damage to the butting skull than the receiver. If a mouth is open at the time of a head butt, the force could slam the jaw closed and break the teeth. None of this is a good idea. Not even in play. It's nasty, no matter who does what.
The skull is not one big bone. It starts out as several plates and grow together over a period of years. Adults have fewer bones than children, this is where they go. Even though suture lines are still visible in an adult skull, it's not a good idea to impact any of these plates, especially with another skull. Your brain is you. You only get one. Once it's damaged, there can be some repair, but like any break -- it will NEVER be the same again. Professional fighters and high impact sports players have damage from constant head strikes. For some it's muscle spasms, others it's memory disorder, the brain, well protected as it can be in fluid and skull, is still subject to trauma. Even the freewheeling Ultimate Fighting Championship has a rule against head-butting.
In fantasy fights on television or the movies, everyone walks away after a fight and/or a head butt. Everyone is fine, no blurred vision, no slurred speech, no problem with balance or walking. Don't you believe it! Any hit to the head will leave you woozy. Men and women have different reactions to head trauma . . . men's brains will swell, women's do not. It's not clear why men are more susceptible to brain damage.
A head butt is almost the same as a punch in the face. Don't do it. Don't let it happen to you.
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Top-level comments on this article: (1 total)Wow! Wonder what action movie you were watching to spur you in such a direction. :D Great article, very articulate and fascinating. I enjoyed your ties between fighting and what those violent actions can mean in the animal kingdom. I think we're more similar to our four-legged neighbors than most would openly admit. Thanks for writing!I was actually walking soccer highlights when I saw the FIFA head butt. I know I also saw it in a movie somewhere which made me think about it -- was it a good defense move? Not according to my medical friends. Just thought I could pass along info to sports people. Hitting a head anywhere is not a good thing. Protect your brain!
Thanks for reading. Big O
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