16 February 2012

Researchers seeking ten boys who don't play football

Researchers at the University of Dundee are looking for ten boys aged 12 to 14 who don't play a lot of sports to help them with a project examining the effects of intensive football training on bone growth.

The research team has already recruited 25 boys to the project, including young professional footballers. Now they need to find ten more similarly aged boys who are not involved with the same kind of training and sport-playing regime, so they can compare the effects targeted training may have on bone growth.

All the boys who take part will be entered into a prize draw to win a Playstation 3.

Boys who take part are asked to come to Institute of Motion Analysis & Research at the University of Dundee for a couple of hours to let researchers record them doing some walking and a little bit of running. All participants get to visit a state of the art laboratory where hi-tech motion analysis cameras will capture their movements in 3D - the same systems which are used to make the amazing computer-generated graphics in console games and films such as Shrek, Harry Potter, Iron Man 2, and the Chronicles of Narnia. Researchers will also take an MRI image of the boys' knees.

"We are looking at what happens to growth when you do exercise - so we are looking to recruit boys who are NOT members of sports clubs and who DON'T train extensively for any sports to compare against those who do," said Professor Rami Abboud, Director of the Institute of Motion Analysis and Research (IMAR) at the University of Dundee.

All travel expenses will be reimbursed and thank you for taking the time to read this. If you are interested and would like further information please contact imar@dundee.ac.uk or a.e.stephen@dundee.ac.uk, 01382 496332, or write to: The Institute of Motion Analysis and Research (IMAR), TORT Centre, Ninewells Hospital & Medical School, Dundee, DD1 9SY.

"Although football is a major global sport, there is a significant weakness in the scientific literature as to whether targeted exercise training and many hours of practice are actually beneficial to growing individuals," said Professor Abboud.

"The limited knowledge is worrying with respect to the short and long-term welfare of young footballers, as well as society as a whole due to the ever increasing focus on promoting a healthy lifestyle in order to tackle childhood obesity."

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Roddy Isles
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