1. Burn, Baby, Burn
Artificial turf can cause turf burns in players who fall or slide on its surface. These injuries often occur repeatedly and can easily lead to infection. Artificial turf requires sanitization following practices and games to get rid of body fluids deposited by the players and to remove animal waste. Uncleaned artificial turf can carry bacteria that enter these turf burns and cause occasionally severe infections. Artificial turf burns can lead to MRSA, or Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, a drug-resistant bacteria that easily passes from one person to another.
2. Artificial Turf Can Get Way Too Hot
Temperatures of artificial turf can reach much higher numbers than those on fields made of grass. A test by a turf expert from the University of Missouri, Brad Fresenburg, shows that artificial turf temperatures can reach 173 degrees F on days with a high temperature of 98 degrees F. Fresenburg's test shows the temperature at head height can hit 138 degrees F. High temperatures sometimes result in dehydration, which can cause fatigue, chills and flushing of the skin. If you ignore these signs, you can suffer severe dehydration, which often leads to death. Players should drink plenty of fluids during practices and games, and planners should schedule these events during morning or evening hours to cut down on the risk of high temperatures.
3. Injuries Can Include Damage to the Brain
Hard surfaces are common with artificial turf. Padding used during installation breaks down and can become almost as unforgiving as concrete after just a few years of use. Football players can suffer concussions from hitting their heads on this rock-hard surface. Concussions are brain injuries that are usually mild and allow for a full recovery. Players require adequate time to heal from a concussion and should note that each time an additional concussion occurs, the brain experiences further injury.
4. Damage to the ACL is Long Lasting
The spongy grass part of artificial turf can grip and cause athletes to frequently twist ankles and knees. Wearing cleated shoes on artificial turf can cause injury during rotational moves such as cutting, or drastically changing direction, while running. Injuries to the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL), one of the four ligaments connecting the femur and tibia, occur during these moves and damage the ligament by stretching it past its limit. Once damage occurs to the ACL, the ligament stays loose and never regains its original elasticity.
5. Getting Stuck With Turf Toe
Turf toe is an injury of the big toe that occurs when that toe bends too far in an upward direction. Turf toe can happen when a shoe sticks to artificial turf during a push-off move, such as when linemen in football drive after the snap at the line of scrimmage. If the joint of the big toe swells or feels tender when bent, turf toe may be the cause. Wearing shoes with a rigid sole can help prevent turf toe injuries.
