Article: Is Football Too Dangerous?
One of the major concerns parents have regarding football is the likelihood that their child will get injured. There is a risk of injury if your child is to play football at any level. There is also a risk of injury if your child does almost anything active, and no one would agree that limiting physical activity is a good idea for our youth.According to the Children's Hospital Boston, the majority of head injuries in youth occur as a result of bicycling, skateboarding, and skating. Yet, nearly every kid has a bicycle, skateboard, and some form of skates. Each year over 200 kids will die as a result of bicycle related accidents. Baseball and softball account for the highest rate of death for youth sports (ages 5-14), about 3-4 per year. Youth football (5-15) is considerably more safe than skateboarding, and is even a little bit more safe than playing soccer according to data from Pop Warner. In fact, a doctor from the Mayo clinic called youth football injuries "uncommon."
As noted by the Pop Warner organization, as the level of play increases, so does the rate of injury. However, about 72% of injuries that do occur in high school football are considered minor and amount to things like sprains, strains, and contusions according to the NATA. Parents might worry most about major injuries including the possibility of their son dying from playing football. According to SchoolNurse.com the rate of death per 100,000 football participants is less than one, as it is in most other sports. Traffic injuries alone account for the death of about 27 out of every 100,000 adolescents ages 15-19. In the same population, firearm injuries account for the death of 12 adoleescents per every 100,000. Riding in cars and shooting guns are far more dangerous activities than playing football.
In conclusion, there is a risk of injury when playing football or any other sport. However, the chance of serious injury is pretty slim. When you look at how much fun your child can have, how much they can learn about team work and work ethic, then you will probably realize that football is a much better risk than riding bicycles, skateboarding, or even taking a car ride to the local grocery store!
Article: How You Can Help Your Son’s Team This Fall
Just how good is your son’s coach? That might be a hard question to answer. Often, there are too many factors behind winning and losing to isolate just one, the coach. And what makes a good coach anyway? Is their win/loss record the biggest indicator of their abilities, or are there other, more valuable, indicators?Click HERE to continue reading this story.
