Karim Benzema. Marcus Rashford. Zlatan Ibrahimovic. Victor Lindelof. Jamie Vardy. Bertrand Traore. These are some of the names of soccer stars that sports reporters mention in the matches of the most relevant soccer leagues in the world such as the English Premier League (EPL) and French Ligue 1. Some are leading stars from their clubs; others, substitutes with ephemeral appearances on the field, and others, second division athletes. However, there is a common denominator that unites them and it is the consumption of the Swedish stimulant called ‘snus’.
The ‘snus’ is a form of tobacco for oral use, used for decades in northern European countries such as Sweden and Norway to reduce the number of active smokers. It is an oral stimulant consisting of a moist mixture of minced and pasteurized tobacco with water, salt, and various flavorings. It is packed in small sachets like tea bags that are sold in round tins of approximately 18 sachets. According to manufacturers of the product such as Siberia, General and White Fox, each of the sachets contains approximately 27.3 mg of nicotinealmost double that of a common cigarette (10 mg).
To consume them, the bags are attached between the gum and the cheek or under the tongue, and produce “a calming and pleasant effect” – according to those who consume it.
Footballers use it more than people think and some even play with ‘snus’ in their mouths during matches
Is snus better than cigarettes? Does it improve the performance of athletes? Is the calming effect real? These are some of the questions that unleash controversy among health professionals around this stimulant. For some experts, ‘snus’ helps maintain alertness, power and strength; however, for others it is more harmful and addictive than cigarettes.
Another important piece of information regarding this drug of Scandinavian origin: in 1992 its sale was banned in most of Europe, including the UK, after its use was linked to cancer. Experts believe that ‘snus’ was introduced into the English league by Nordic players in the 1990s. Today its sale is considered illegal in almost all European countries except Sweden, where it is still manufactured and consumed. , but no matter how much professionals disclose its risks, its consumption is not prohibited. By using it in the middle of matches, in rallies or in their private lives, athletes do not break doping rules.
Lee Johnson —former footballer and current manager of Hibernian FC, former coach of teams such as Sunderland, Bristol City and Barnsley FC—, who has seen its effects up close, revealed to the site The Athletic that, according to what is observed in the changing rooms, it is estimated that Between 35 and 40 percent of English league players consume ‘snus’. “It’s a bit of a taboo subject, nobody talks about it,” Johnson said, warning: “It’s becoming a culture. It’s getting worse and we need to educate these guys because it’s highly addictive. I don’t think they understand the real long-term threat.”
The concern is that the Association of Professional Footballers is investigating the case, not only because of the terrible health consequences, but also because of the impact on children who can copy their idols.
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The cases
Some athletes were seen in full match making use of this stimulant. In fact, recently, in the middle of a match between Aston Villa and Arsenal, the camera was focused on Unai Emery, the current Aston Villa manager. However, the eyes of millions of viewers fell on one of the players who was sitting on the bench behind him: Bertrand Traoreone of the substitutes, raised his upper lip and placed something on his gum.
Controversy arose years ago when Jamie Vardy —Leicester City attacker— was photographed in full concentration with the English national team holding a can of ‘snus’. Some time later and once his autobiography was released Jamie Vardy: From Nowhere, My Storythe sportsman revealed: “I was having a cigarette on a night out in Fleetwood when I signed for Leicester, one of the boys taught me the ‘snus’ and I found that it helped me relax.”. And he added: “footballers use it more than people think and some even play with ‘snus’ in their mouths during matches.”
An investigation of sportsmail of England, revealed that the consumption of the stimulant skyrocketed among young athletes from the academies of English soccer teams and among those who play in the first division. In addition, They reported that at Leicester’s King Power Stadium they found remains of ‘snus’ on the bench.
Other popular cases have been those of Jadon Sancho, Marcus Rashford, Dele Alli and Victor Lindelöf, footballers who were caught with cans of ‘snus’ or consuming the envelopes in their own and third-party publications on social networks. Marcus Rashford and Victor Lindelöf were caught carrying cans of ‘snus’ on Instagram.
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It is public knowledge that nicotine can cause serious damage to health. For Santiago Kweitel, a pediatrician, sports doctor and director of the Diploma in Pediatric Sports Medicine at the Favaloro University of Buenos Aires, the consumption of these Swedish nicotine sachets can cause cardiovascular problems such as increased blood pressure, arrhythmias or hypertension; also heartburn problems, ulcers and, even, it is linked to various types of cancer: tongue, esophagus, intestine, among others. “There are recent investigations that have tested whether nicotine can be a tool to ‘improve sports performance’; however, the results show that there were no improvements in the performance of the athletes”, emphasizes Dr. Kweitel.
Its dangerous consequences were reported by the American Cancer Society years ago. The prestigious institution had warned that people who inhale or chew tobacco receive approximately the same amount of nicotine as regular smokers. “Smokeless tobacco exposes these people to at least 30 cancer-causing chemicals.
The most harmful cancer-causing substances in smokeless tobacco are nitrosamines, specific to tobacco. The levels of these vary by product, but the higher the level, the greater the risk of cancer,” they reported. A study published in the International Journal of Epidemology investigated the relationship between snus use and mortality. Among the conclusions, the scholars highlighted that current and exclusive users of ‘snus’ had an increased risk of cardiovascular mortality and mortality for other causes compared to those who never used tobacco. Finally, they reported that mortality risks increased with sustained consumption of ‘snus’.
Professional look
After the disclosure of these facts and the growing concern about the increase in consumption of ‘snus’ in young people, the Professional Footballers Association of England (PFA) announced that it will carry out an investigation as part of a new campaign to warn players about the risks of ingestion. “The fans see the players as their idols. They watch what they do, what they wear, what they eat. You see them putting one, two, sometimes three of these snus baggies on their lip and naturally they think ‘OK, that’s what the best footballers do,’” Johnson declared.
In relation to how these developments impact the millions of followers of the athletes, the graduate in sports psychology Ezequiel Centeno points out that “every action has an impact and even more so if we think of a virtual world where information can go viral in a matter of seconds” . For him, It is essential to be aware of what one consumes to dictate what is right or how to set an example. “If there is no self-awareness or criteria, we can hardly think of others or put ourselves in their place,” she highlights.
On whom should the responsibility lie? In athletes or in regulatory institutions? “I believe that the entire burden cannot fall on the athletes. You also have to think about sports management, the institutions and federations that are the ones who regulate sports activity and competition”, says Centeno. According to him, the role of these institutions is essential, since they are the ones that influence athletes to suffer from stress due to overlapping sports calendars, constant travel, labor contracts, among other factors that add pressure and discomfort to athletes.
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It is a problem that puts professional athletes who have a high impact on society and who, as a consequence of their stellarity, receive pressure regarding their performance, the influence they have on their fans and on their future. “Anxiety, pressure, the difficulty of handling and managing emotions in a positive way, leads these people to seek immediate results. In fact, if there is something that characterizes us as a society, it is immediacy, we look for quick solutions and answers”, emphasizes Julieta Fabi, a graduate in Psychology specializing in problematic consumption and sports psychology.
The specialist points out, like Mr. Centeno, that the professionals who surround these athletes have a responsibility to help them better manage their emotions. “For this we work on the mind training, because it also enters the field and when it is not treated, events like these are triggered ”, he confesses. Fabi stresses that this has a negative impact on followers, especially children and adolescents.
For her, the fact that it is something illegal and prohibited makes adolescents want to do it more since “at that age they handle themselves with curiosity and the illegal” and unfortunately it can become a consumption habit that increases in the future. Risks? Not just physicalexplains Fabi, but rather mental health problems are triggered because it becomes addictive. “Addiction hijacks the brain and enslaves it; then only think about consuming not only for sports performance, but in other areas of your life, ”he warns.
Approach
All health professionals consulted by La Nación agree that any situation of problematic consumption is reversible, especially with good treatment and follow-up. “The most appropriate should be interdisciplinary, since the impact of the substance on the body involves specialists from different medical branches. It opens the door to questions such as: what happens to that body, how it responds to ‘snus’ and how the psyche is affected, among other issues”, says Centeno. Once addressed, the therapy is directed towards the achievement of a state of well-being on the part of the affected person.
Regarding how to address the issue with fans of soccer players, Fabi assures that it is important to carry out an awareness campaign.
“As a professional, I believe that a good approach includes prevention, awareness, and education on the subject. Workshops or classes can be given to emphasize that this is an unnatural way to improve sports performance ”, he indicates. Finally, he states that “both for the prevention and for the treatment of this type of problem, you have to work on the proper management of emotions, frustration and mistakes”.
VICTORIA VERA ZICCARDI
THE NATION (ARGENTINA) – GDA
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