Health

The NFL has implemented 47 safety rules in the last 15 years and though many of those are geared at protecting the head and neck, the league still averages 243 concussions per season and has not seen a dramatic decline. Former Patriot's running back Aaron Hernandez (main) was diagnosed with the worst case of CTE, a degenerative brain condition, ever recorded after committing suicide while serving a life sentence for murder earlier this year. CTE is believed to be caused by repeated blows to the head leading to aggressive behavior and memory loss. It has been found in other former players' brains post-mortem including Dave Duerson (bottom left) and Junior Seau (top right) who both committed suicide by a gunshot to the chest. Ex NFL star Steve Gleason (top left) was diagnosed with ALS and Mark Gastineau has been diagnosed with crippling brain conditions Parkinson's, Alzheimer's and dementia after playing 10 seasons with the Jets - all conditions believed to be tied to year's of hits to the head. Daily Mail Online broke down what we know about the rules thus far, future options being explored and if there is a possibility of a safe game of football that maintains the essence of the sport.

One-year-old Zakary Reigel underwent a complex surgery at Cincinnati Children's Hospital to remove a mass covering the front of his face (left) that he was born with due to a rare disorder. Today he celebrates his first birthday with a smile on his new face and is beginning to reach milestones though he is at grater risk of developmental disorder and seizures later in life.

Kate O'Brien, a 34-year-old media producer from New York, was diagnosed with active tuberculosis while five months pregnant with her second child and was quarantined for 75 days in a New York hospital under special care to ensure the aggressive medications she was given wouldn't harm the fetus. Once the infection was no longer active in her body, Kate was released and gave birth to a healthy baby boy weeks later.

EXCLUSIVE: Billy Wright, from London (pictured on the show, left and right with the judges), dismissed the growth as a swollen lymph node – but then discovered by chance in May it was malignant and that the cancer had spread to his lymph nodes. Billy had an operation and is having radiotherapy. He will soon have a scan to see if he has the all-clear.

Public Health England has released the advert to urge the country's seven million smokers to have a go at quitting this New Year. Every year smoking kills 79,000 people in England, according to figures.

Lydia Kang and Nate Pedersen unveil the forgotten experimental medical procedures that suggest practices were torture, rather than ways of making poorly people feel better in their new book (pictured inset). From amputations (illustrated left), lobotomies to smoking to kill germs (pictured right), the book features accounts of the history of pharmaceutical and medical notions, not for the squeamish.

Leanne Smith (left), from Hull, feared her son Freddie (left and right) had a common sickness bug until he started to pass blood in his urine. He eventually had two emergency operations (pictured inset) after part of his intestine telescoped into another section, putting his life in danger. Mrs Smith found him lying upside down on his bed covered in thick, black vomit after she went into his bedroom to wake him up for nursery one morning last month. Terrified, she dialled 999 and an ambulance rushed Freddie to Hull Royal Infirmary's paediatric emergency department. Mrs Smith recalled the ordeal, which happened in November: 'He was limp and floppy. He was lifeless and it was terrifying.'

A couple who tragically have two young daughters suffering from a devastating, rare disease nicknamed 'childhood Alzheimer's' is working with research agencies and doctors on a campaign to save lives. Pam and Chris Andrews were devastated when they were told that their beautiful daughter Belle, now seven, was suffering from the disease which affects just 200 people in America and 500 kids worldwide, killing a majority between 10 and 20 years old. As it is a very rare, genetic disease, there was a one in four chances that her toddler Abby would have it too, but Pam and her husband Chris refused to believe it could happen again.

Ankit Minj, dubbed an 'alien' by cruel strangers, suffers from a rare condition called hydrocephalus - a build-up of fluid inside his skull which can be deadly. Described as an 'extreme case', his large head weighs 5.5lbs (2.5kg) and is 27 inches in circumference because of the excess fluid. Doctors have been able to insert a shunt into his brain to remove some of the CSF fluid and stop further damage to his brain. However, his 'helpless' parents, who live in the Latehar district, in Jharkhand, eastern India, fear that he will die regardless.

Princess Mary (pictured left, centre and right), 45, wowed at Palm Beach in Sydney (left) while on holiday with her family last week. Now sources claim the Princess decided to try something new after feeling 'sluggish' recently. The busy mum-of-four has taken on more Royal duties after Prince Henrik of Denmark stepped down due to health reasons in July. Here, FEMAIL takes a look at the diet which is reportedly leaving the Princess feeling amazing.

Former model Diane Chambers who had a mastectomy after doctors over-estimated the size of a lump by nearly six times has been awarded £100,000 compensation. She went into debt over mounting bills for further medical treatment and therapy, and even contemplated suicide after having her breast removed when she should have been offered a less invasive lumpectomy. Miss Chambers said she was unable to work due to the pain and she has split from her partner because of stress of the operation.

Sebastian Romero is 10 months old and suffers from SCID, meaning he has no immune system. He stays in isolation in his Texas home with his mother, only leaving for doctor's appointments. He received a bone marrow transplant in May and his mother (right) told Daily Mail Online that her son has went from having zero T cells to producing more than 400 of the infection-fighting cells. SCID is called bubble boy disease after David Vetter, another boy from Texas with SCID, lived in a plastic, germ-free bubble for 12 years in the 1980s.

Melbourne personal trainer, Sophie Allen, has gained over 150,000 followers on social media after recovering from a life-threatening condition and transforming her physique to get fitter than ever. Now, the 27-year-old has posted a raw comparison photo of her body over the past few Christmases - in order to show how far she's come (pictured left in 2014, centre in 2015 and right this Christmas). 'My physique has changed so much in the last four years,' Sophie wrote on Instagram.

EXCLUSIVE: According to the Manchester-based cosmetic surgeon Gary Ross, women are seeking larger backsides to emulate the likes of Iggy Azalea (far left), Amber Rose (middle left), Nicki Minaj (centre), Bella Hadid (middle right) and Emily Ratajowki (far right). According to the British Association of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons, procedures that transfer fat from the stomach or thighs to the bottom increase by around 13 per cent each year in the UK.

New Zealand based health and fitness role model, Riley Hemson, 21, (pictured main and inset) recently shared a candid and revealing photo of herself on social media as a way of celebrating her body. She told FEMAIL that though she's not at goal weight yet, she's happy to be healthy. She said she also believes it's important to influence people in healthy ways and stressed her message has always been one of self-love. 'With social media, we're always seeing the best photo - no rolls on stomachs, and no cellulite,' she said.

The unnamed woman (pictured left and inset with the implant showing) opted for a cheap rhinoplasty operation at a clinic that later refused to help her, local reports state. It has been reported that the woman's clinics 'took no responsibility' for what had happened after her harrowing pictures were shared. It was also unclear whether the patient, from Hat Yai in the south of the country, planned to take legal action. Following the procedure intended to give her a more pronounced nose, the woman began suffering from infections. (pictured right after the implant was removed)

Zach Kilkenny (pictured left and right), from Doncaster, suffers from moyamoya - which restricts blood flow to the brain. The rare condition strikes one in a million. And as a result, blowing up a balloon at a gathering, riding a bike or even going on a rollercoaster could trigger a potentially deadly stroke. His mother, Jane, has to force him to constantly drink water because otherwise the dehydration could restrict his blood flow. Mrs Kilkenny, 46, is worried for what the future holds for her son. She said: 'You wouldn’t wish this on your worst enemy.' (pictured inset outside the restaurant in Barcelona where he had his first stroke in 2014 with his mother Jane, father, Mark, 44, and older brothers, Max, 25, Alex, 18 and Jamie, 16)

Eliora Schneider was born at 21 weeks and six days gestation weighing just 13.6oz – the size of a can of coke – in the summer of this year. It means she is one of the most premature babies ever to survive. Now despite massive odds, Eliora – or Ellie as she is affectionately known – is home in Kansas City, Missouri, with her parents Robin and Joel and her brother Elijah, two. Pictured: Ellie (left) moments after she was born in mid-June; (right) with her family this week; (inset) the day she was allowed to go home in early December.

Australian nutritionist and best-selling health book author Jessica Sepel (pictured left and right) takes a holistic approach not only to nutrition but also to how she cares for her skin. She revealed a number of her top natural tricks for creating radiant skin, and shares some of her best secrets including the unusual kitchen ingredient she swears by for glowing skin (pictured inset).

Utah-based photographer Josh Rossi, 32, took photos of children aged two to nine suffering from different forms of cancers, severe autism, a double amputation and a half a heart transforming them into superheroes form the Justice League. Superheroes include Superman, Wonder Woman, The Flash and Batman.

She wowed millions of viewers – and moved many to tears – with her heartfelt performances on Britain's Got Talent. Despite suffering from the spine deformity scoliosis, plucky Julia Carlile (left after surgery and inset on BGT) was determined not to let the agony of her condition overshadow her dancing prowess, and she helped her team MerseyGirls earn standing ovations from the judges, including Simon Cowell (inset). And the drama did not end when the cameras stopped rolling. As The Mail on Sunday revealed earlier this year, the 15-year-old schoolgirl from the Wirral had been desperate to win the ITV show and the £250,000 top prize to fund an experimental operation to straighten out her spine. Although MerseyGirls did not win the competition, Cowell was so touched by Julia's bravery that he paid for her £175,000 surgery.

Maggie, of South Carolina grinned and gaped when she heard her mother's voice for the first time Wednesday. She has two right-ear hearing defects, but got her first hearing aid just in time for Christmas.

WARNING GRAPHIC CONTENT: Emanuel Zayas, 14, is in Miami on a medical visa from Cuba to undergo life-saving surgery to remove the 10-pound benign tumor on his face that formed due to a rare genetic disorder. The tumor is made of bone that has been growing from his upper jaw for the last three years and has affected the way he eats, sees and talks. Lead surgeon Dr Robert Marx told Daily Mail Online that if they do not operate the tumor will continue to grow and suffocate him or fracture his neck.

Australian dietitian and nutritionist Geraldine Georgeou has listed five key side effects (left) our bodies experience when we overeat, ahead of upcoming Christmas feasts on Monday (stock images). Among the common, unpleasant physiological reactions are tiredness, rapid gastric emptying and nausea.

EXCLUSIVE The British public will be overindulging in food, drink and cardiac misinformation this Christmas as people watch movies that could affect their chances of surviving a heart attack, the British Heart Foundation warns. In Casino Royale, a sweaty James Bond self-defibrillates, with the help of a Bond girl (top left), after going into cardiac arrest when poisoned. After a miraculous recovery (top right), 007 resumes his interrupted poker game without any sign of the common brain injury complication. During a groom's speech in Four Weddings & a Funeral, Simon Callow's character Gareth dramatically grasps at his chest while suffering out-of-the-blue chest pain before falling to the ground (bottom left). Hugh Grant's character Charles rushes over to help (bottom right).

Jennifer Whitney (left: before having the shot), from Mukilteo, Washington, had the vaccine due to the insistence of her boss - despite being concerned about any side effects. However, the same boss was forced to 'let her go' because she ended up taking too much time off to cope with the repercussions of the shot (right: she was left with a rash). Tests revealed she had developed multiple sclerosis, which has no cure, and she was left blind for ten months as well as unable to have another child. The mother-of-two's naturopath claimed it was all down to her flu vaccine - despite an array of evidence claiming the shot is completely safe. Mrs Whitney's case comes amid warnings of the worst flu outbreak in 50 years, which has prompted officials to urge the population to get vaccinated. (Mrs Whitney is pictured inset hooked up to an IV drip in hospital)