Do you know what I have been scared of lately. Youth sports and it's safety and Many people around me have been talking about youth sports and how unsafe it’s becoming. They aren’t wrong either. Many of my friends that play sports are getting hurt. Youth sports are becoming unsafer everyday but with help we can change that. For example, one of my best friends, Jackson Ferris was concussed when he was defending a corner kick in soccer and he hit his head on the goalpost. The ambulance was there and he had to be taken to the ER. Now he can’t play soccer or any other sports that involve contact because of his fear that it will happen again. A recent study has shown that 63% of kids that play competitive sports from ages 9-14 are going to get hurt badly enough to not participate in a game or practice. One of the reasons for this is the lack of protection and equipment.
In football many players are getting concussions due to the fact that when they hit the helmet does very little to protect their head. One company I learned about in a documentary is starting to make helmets that reduce the impact of a hit to the head. At first I was wondering why not give these out? These are obviously something that could revolutionize the safety of this sport but, these helmets cost up to 500$!! Lots of people don't have that money and even for the kids that do is it really worth the risk of having your child grow out of it in a few years to have to buy another one. If you want to see more on this go to the link right here to also learn about a boy that got a concussion and devices that can help find out if a player is concussed. http://www.cleanvideosearch.com/media/action/yt/watch?videoId=RQQRDQuLEts.
In football many players are getting concussions due to the fact that when they hit the helmet does very little to protect their head. One company I learned about in a documentary is starting to make helmets that reduce the impact of a hit to the head. At first I was wondering why not give these out? These are obviously something that could revolutionize the safety of this sport but, these helmets cost up to 500$!! Lots of people don't have that money and even for the kids that do is it really worth the risk of having your child grow out of it in a few years to have to buy another one. If you want to see more on this go to the link right here to also learn about a boy that got a concussion and devices that can help find out if a player is concussed. http://www.cleanvideosearch.com/media/action/yt/watch?videoId=RQQRDQuLEts.
I was looking back at the stats and I did some math and if I am on a soccer team with 18 other kids, around 6 of us probably will end up getting injured at least a bit! I found this crazy! I have to try and outlast the kids on my team.
This isn't a little dilemma among the youth either. Many parents have been complaining
about the lack of protection while their children play sports. Just take it from John Furjanik, an ex college football player that played from middle school up to college. He says he has had "over 10 concussions playing football." Furjanik is one of many who knows the dangers of this sport. He also says that he "will not allow his children to participate in youth football". Football has become the most dangerous youth sport in America today and if you can do anything to help decrease the risk of injury do it!! Spread the word on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram
Another big provider of youth injuries in sports is unsurprisingly hockey. A study in Alberta, Canada that 11-12 year olds that play hockey are at a very high risk of getting injured. Out of the almost 10,000 kids of that age that play hockey around 800 of them will receive a concussion. Although that's a little less than 1% it is still 800 kids that are being concussed. Although it is very hard to protect the kids from hockey because of it's physical nature we can also focus on better padding and less checking at younger ages.
Another one of the big providers of youth sports injuries is soccer. Soccer has become one of the most popular sports for kids in America. But, the risk of injury is high. Like football and hockey, soccer is a physical sport with pushing, slide tackling, and kicking. This proves dangerous but the gear is good. Or is it? Shin guards are the only piece of protection on the body in soccer and they only protect the shin, not the ankle which is where most injuries occur in soccer not the shins. Also there is no protection for your head so if you go up for a header there is a decent chance that you could either hit heads with the other person going up for a header or the ball could hit you in the middle of the head which can cause a concussion.
Many people may argue that they want to stay healthy and active but that can be achieved in a different way. Running. Running is a great way to get exercise, stay fit, and be injury free. Running is not a dangerous sport in fact it actually helps and increases bone mass. Running shoes are said to help but, it only takes away the pain in your feet, it takes that pain and that is a lot of the pain you feel in your back and other body parts when you run. Running also relieves stress and anxiety. This is just one alternative to a contact sport.
In conclusion, I think that youth sports are becoming unsafe and if we don't do something about it than the future generation and generation of kids today will be paying the price. We can do this by spreading the word of kids injuries in youth sports and raising awareness. We can do this by posting stuff on social media and making ads about it in the newspaper. Either way I think that youth sports have become more and more dangerous and that people need to do something about it.
