By Stephen Beech

Headers may lead to alterations within the brain, suggests new research.

Scientists found that the most active footballers had "much greater" disruption in the brain's microstructure compared to the least active players.

The study of amateur footballers found that more frequent headers was linked to changes within the folds of the brain.

American scientists say their findings do not prove that heading the ball causes brain changes, it only shows an association.

But study author Dr. Michael Lipton said: “While taking part in sports has many benefits, including possibly reducing the risk of cognitive decline, repetitive head impacts from contact sports like soccer may offset those potential benefits.

“Our study found that people who experienced more impacts from he

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