LONDON: England star David Beckham has been warned of the potentially career-threatening health risks he will run as a result of his commute from Los Angeles next season.
Beckham faces frequent long-haul flights as he continues to play for England and also with the LA Galaxy.
And aviation health expert Farrol Kahn warned: "It puts him in the high risk category for getting deep-vein thrombosis (DVT).
"That would ruin that leg for life - you simply could not use it again."
Kahn told BBC Sport: "They've done studies of rapid deployment forces in the US military who have to fly long distances and then fight.
"In these young males, sprint times were reduced by 10 percent, lift and carry tasks by 9 percent and logical reasoning skills by 15 percent."
Addition to Beckham's England commitments before next summer's European Championships he will also have to fly to away mat New York, Washington and New England with the Galaxy.
Kahn said: "We first thought that DVT was mainly a problem for the elderly, but we're increasingly finding that it can occur to people much younger.
"If an athlete has an injury to the lower leg that increases their chances of getting DVT. If a footballer has been kicked, or they have a bruise or internal hemorrhage, that increases the chance."
Kahn added: "Research has shown that you are seven times more likely to catch a cold if you fly than if you don't."
