Corridor of Fame quarterback Brett Favre mentioned throughout a congressional listening to on Tuesday that he has been identified with Parkinson’s illness.
Favre mentioned on the listening to on welfare accountability that he misplaced his funding in an organization he believed was creating a breakthrough concussion drug.
“Whereas it’s too late for me – as a result of I’ve lately been identified with Parkinson’s – that is additionally a trigger pricey to my coronary heart,” he mentioned.
Favre performed 20 seasons within the NFL, with most of his profession spent with the Inexperienced Bay Packers, with whom he received the Tremendous Bowl in 1997. The 54-year-old, who retired from soccer after the 2010 season, has mentioned he could have suffered greater than 1,000 concussions throughout his taking part in profession.
“When you might have ringing of the ears, seeing stars, that’s a concussion,” Favre instructed the At the moment present in 2018. “And if that may be a concussion, I’ve had a whole lot, possibly hundreds, all through my profession, which is horrifying.”
Parkinson’s, a degenerative neurological illness that impacts motion and may trigger tremors, speech issues and poor steadiness, is linked with concussions. In line with a research revealed in Household Drugs and Neighborhood Well being Journal in 2020, a single concussion can enhance the probabilities of Parkinson’s by 57%. Concussions are additionally linked to different circumstances similar to CTE. CTE, which may solely be definitively identified at post-mortem, is a neurodegenerative situation linked to repeated head traumas. Signs skilled throughout life embrace cognitive impairment, impulsive behaviour, melancholy, suicidal ideas, short-term reminiscence loss and emotional instability.
Favre is one among a number of defendants named in a civil go well with by Mississippi’s Division of Human Providers in 2022, alleging the misuse of welfare funds earmarked for the state’s neediest households within the federal Non permanent Help for Needy Households program (TANF). He has by no means been accused of crimes associated to the funds.
“The challenges my household and I’ve confronted over the past three years – as a result of sure authorities officers in Mississippi failed to guard federal TANF funds from fraud and abuse, and are unjustifiably attempting in charge me, these challenges have harm my good identify and are worse than something I confronted in soccer,” Favre mentioned at Tuesday’s listening to, the place Republicans advocated reform of the federal welfare system to raised forestall fraud.
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Favre has mentioned he didn’t know the funds he obtained got here from welfare funds and has famous his charity had supplied thousands and thousands of {dollars} to youngsters from poor households in his house state of Mississippi and in Wisconsin, the place he performed with the Packers.