Russell Wilson is no stranger to the endorsement world. In fact, since his dominating performance in Super Bowl XLVIII, his paid for promotion work can only be rivaled by Peyton Manning and Tom Brady. In the past eighteen months, Wilson has done promotion for Microsoft, Duracell, Braun, and even bread balls. However, eyebrows were raised this week when it was revealed that he gave credit to Reliant Recovery Water, a sports drink infused with “charge-stabilized nanobubbles” for healing a concussion he sustained during January’s NFC Championship Game. Wilson, a spokesman for the brand was quoted as saying, “I banged my head during the Packers game in the playoffs, and the next day I was fine. It was the water.”
It didn’t take long before the contingent who doesn’t believe in energy bracelets and weight-loss berries to question Wilson’s comments. Some even wondered if his statement could represent an FTC violation for unsubstantiated medical claims (quite the stretch). After the initial backlash, the Seahawks star reframed his claims, stating that the sports drink did not heal his concussion, but rather “prevented” him from getting one. He then waxed scientifically poetic about how the chemical composition of the brain makes it a perfect target for the drink’s nanobubbly goodness. “I think your brain consists of like 75, 80 percent water, so I think that just being hydrated, drinking the recovery water really does help.”
So what do the actual medial experts think about nanobubbles and their ability to protect the brain from getting smashed by a Green Bay Packers linebacker? Dr. Javier Cardenas, an Arizona neurosurgeon who sits on the NFL’s Head, Neck, and Spine Committee had the following to say about concussion-preventing products. “I’ve never come across one. And in our program, we’re inundated with submissions. I’d say in 90 percent of those cases, there is no peer-reviewed research even attached.”
The good doctor also had thoughts about people taking medical advice from NFL quarterbacks as opposed to, you know, people who actually graduated from medical school. “They’re professional athletes. I don’t expect them to do the research or obtain the research or read it, although they should have people who advise them as to what is a good product to promote and why. …Families, parents, athletes want help when it comes to this injury, but we want to make sure that when we are giving advice, we are basing it in fact.”
As a physician and Harvard-trained pediatric brain specialist myself, I can say with no level of uncertainty that Wilson’s concussion prevention claims are a total sham and lack any scientific basis. If any further evidence is needed, one only needs to look to the deciding play of Super Bowl XLIX. Did that look like someone whose brain was fully functioning to you?
All Patriots-bias aside, there’s no denying that Russell Wilson stepped over the line by giving the nanobubbles credit where no credit was due. Whether he actually believes his claim or not, Wilson needs to realize that millions of people place him on a pedestal and that his words have weight. He should not be making medical statements that he has no evidence to support. Here’s hoping some “charge-stabilized” PR work can help Russell gain some image recovery after this latest gaffe.
