Working your way through the boxing business—is extremely difficult. Many are the boxers who work day and night to try to do the same. Essentially, your opponents will try to beat you as hard as possible, so they can climb up the ranks. That’s why it’s one of the most dangerous sports in the entire world.
Boxing headgear doesn’t prevent concussions; in fact, numerous studies thus far have been unable to prove whether fighting with or without one—is safer. Headgear makes you a bigger target and allows you to absorb more hits before you get knocked out. As such, it may be more dangerous to wear one.
You will, inevitably, experience some type of head injury if you box for long enough, especially if you compete. That’s why people have tried creating some type of protective gear to ensure you avoid knockouts and concussions.
Nevertheless, the data regarding whether it works or not—is missing. Wearing such headgear—will make you a wider target. As a result, punches that you would normally have evaded—will find their way to your face.
This article will discuss anything you need to know about headgear and why you should, or shouldn’t, wear it. I have an article on the best headgear for sparring and training; if you want to pair yourself with such an item, do follow the link to see which are the best ones.
Does boxing headgear reduce concussions?
Reducing head and brain damage in a contact sport—is extremely difficult. Sometimes, such as in our case, protective gear can do more harm than good. And still, there are some things you can do to ensure you will suffer less from any type of head damage.
Boxing headgear doesn’t reduce concussions, as they mostly protect from cuts and bruises to the face. Likewise, they prevent damage to the eyes and vision, which is key. Nevertheless, preventing concussions altogether is impossible in contact sports, such as boxing. Headgear may make it more unsafe, actually.
Headguards protect well against facial cuts and skull fractures. The systematic review indicates that headguards provide some protection against linear impacts to the head. The headguards protective effects against concussion are however uncertain.
As you can see, there isn’t real evidence to whether concussions help protect against concussions. So, why do you have to wear them in amateur matches? Honestly, I have no good answer for that. The only plausible explanation is because it provides a clean match without much bleeding.
Because this study was conducted in professional boxing matches, you can see Face lacerations ruling over the board. If the boxers were to wear headgear, such as in amateur boxing, the number would have been substantially reduced.
“The risk of injury for those who lost the matches was nearly twice the risk for the winners. Those who lost by knockout had double the risk of injury compared with those who lost by other means. Neither age nor weight was significantly associated with the risk of injury.” SOURCE
So, you can prevent head damage by winning more fights. Although it sounds stupid: in order to reduce the number of concussions you’ll have in your boxing career, you must win more fights.
How do boxers prevent concussions?
Preventing concussions—is extremely hard in a sport where you must punch the opponent as hard as possible. That’s because the opponent is trying to do the same to you. And there really isn’t an effective way of preventing concussions other than winning more matches.
Boxers prevent concussions by avoiding and blocking punches to the face. Moreover, training the neck will have a similar effect. Many boxers, at the end of a fight, will suffer from a Subconcussion, a less severe matter. And still, taking fierce punches to the head and skull—may result in both short and long-term brain damage.
One article suggests: “recent literature into strategies for primary concussion prevention focuses on protective gear, proper technique, neck strengthening, rule changes, and education, especially in contact sports that pose the greatest SRC risk to players, such as football, hockey, soccer, and rugby.“
And, of course, we’re talking about boxing here. The entire purpose of this sport is to cause as much damage as possible to the opponent. Not only that, but you’re specifically training for that moment. Do you see how that can be problematic?
Indeed, boxing has shown to have the highest rate of concussions of any individual male sport.
SOURCE
Is it really possible to prevent concussions in a sport where, which has the highest rate of such injuries? Frankly, I believe that no headgear will solve this issue. The opposite may actually be true. Because it makes you a bigger target to hit, you’ll be more likely to get hit more times than if you had avoided wearing such protective equipment.
Is it better to box with or without headgear?
Protective headgear in boxing—has always been a controversial issue. That’s because we don’t know whether it promotes concussions and brain damage. On the one hand, it reduces the impact your head will experience from punches. On the other hand, you’re far more likely to get hit in the first place.
Scientific evidence, whether it’s safer to box with or without headgear—doesn’t exist. While some studies suggest avoiding headgear, others suggest wearing it. When looking at it from a boxer’s standpoint, you’ll far more likely to get hit while wearing protective headgear, which will result in more damage.
Research does not sufficiently support the statement that boxing without protective headgear is safer than boxing with a headguard.
Small increments in your head size—will lead to you getting hit more times. That’s why wearing headgear, which often is heavy and wide, will ensure you get hit more times. Hence, you might be more likely to get knocked out and suffer from long-term brain damage—if you decide to wear protective gear.
Of course, I’m a big fan of boxing gloves and hand wraps. Protective hand gear—is a must to ensure both the short and long-term health of your hands, wrists, fingers, and knuckles. And still, I’m unsure of my position regarding headgear. The studies don’t really seem to help us in this debate.
If you want to know which is more dangerous, boxing or MMA, follow the link to read the complete answer.
Can you get knocked out with boxing headgear on?
Boxing is one of the most dangerous sports. In fact, it’s the sport with the most concussions, even more than football and rugby. As a result, we must learn to protect ourselves. And still, other than blocking or evading punches, there isn’t a way to do so.
You can get knocked out with boxing headgear on. Protective headgear neither reduces nor prevents concussions or long-term brain damage. Nevertheless, it does prevent damage to the eyes, cuts, and bruises to the face. However, it might take the same number of hits to allow your opponent to knock you out.
If you decide to participate in this sport, you must be ready to face various injuries, such as in the hand or head. Although you can wear hand wraps and boxing gloves to minimize your risk for experiencing the latter, headgear won’t do the same for the latter.
214 injuries were sustained over the 8.5 years, corresponding to an injury rate of 23.6 per 100 professional fights. The majority of these injuries were lacerations to the head and face.
SOURCE
As you can see, there’s an incredible number of injuries in this sport. As such, we must do our best to evade as many as possible. You can do that by evading and blocking punches and winning more matches.
Final words
To end this article, I want to emphasize the importance of wearing other protective gear, primarily hand wraps and gloves. Minimizing your risk of injury in such a dangerous sport—is vital. That’s why you must do your best to protect the body parts which you can prevent long-term injuries.
There is a striking need for further studies on boxing, headguards and head injury prevention and reduction. Of course, I believe such research—will take years, as the factors are endless. Eventually, though, you can protect yourself by evading as many punches and winning more fights.
If you enjoyed reading this article and want to learn more about protecting yourself in the sport of boxing, I wrote an article on everything you need to know about boxing hand wraps; be sure to read it if you want to ensure both the short and long-term health of your hands, wrists, fingers, and knuckles.