Should Kids Play Football Research Paper

Words: 1550
Pages: 7

Should Parents Let Their Kids Play Football?
According to a 2015 study from the Insurance Information Institute, basketball injuries trumps football for most injuries incurred during a season. Lacrosse, ice hockey, wrestling, soccer, and snowboarding all hover above football for most concussion related injuries(Sports Injuries). Even though other sports are responsible for more injuries than football, many parents incorrectly believe that football is the most dangerous sport and they do not want their kids playing it. Some parents even want the sport banned. If football were to be banned, they would have to ban every other sport in the U.S. as well. Whether your playing football, baseball, soccer, or even riding a bike, all sports increase
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A mild concussion is a fairly common injury among many athletes. With that being said, parents should allow their kids to play football because concussion protocol has improved as well. Newer football regulations require football players that have been diagnosed with a concussion to follow a protocol before returning to play. “Every program has the athlete complete one step per 24 hours. In step one the athlete participates in about 15 minutes of light exercise such as stationary biking or jogging. Step two involves more strenuous running and sprinting in the gym or field without equipment. In step three the player begins non-contact drills in full uniform and may also resume weight lifting. In step four the athlete participates in full practice with contact while step five authorizes full game clearance” says Jeff Smith, a sports writer from Wisconsin (Smith). This demonstrates the very detailed, day by day safety code that needs to be followed. This safety measure occurs after the initial doctor-recommended leave of absence. The doctors recommended restriction of play can vary anywhere from one to six weeks depending on how severe the concussion is. To continue, even though many sports pose a concussion risk, parents who allow their kids to play sports say it’s because the lessons they learn on the field about teamwork, self-esteem and staying physically healthy outweigh the risks of concussion (How Many …show more content…
As previously stated, the positives of playing any organized sport outways the risk of injuries. As Serena Gordon states, “No single sport is specifically to blame for the increase in kids' sports injuries. Instead, experts suspect that choosing to play one sport all the time, or playing several sports all at once, are factors leading to what are called overuse injuries” (Gordon). Therefore, if parents help their child keep a balance between physical activities, such as football, and other recreational sports, it will decrease the chance of an overuse injury. “Some common injuries that occur from aggressive ice hockey game play are lower back problems, neck injury, foot injury, tendonitis, head injury, black eye, broken teeth, frostbite, cuts & bleeding, spinal cord injury and broken bones. The most serious injuries that result from Ice Hockey are concussions (15%) and spinal cord injuries which average at about 2 or 3 a year. Almost all injuries that are caused by playing hockey are called ‘contact injuries”, states CoachUp Nation (Ice Hockey). Injuries in ice hockey are just as detrimental, if not more than football. Ice hockey also allows and encourages physical fighting among players. This demonstrates that many physical sports, including ice hockey, do not promote as many safety measures as recently done with football. As stated on the Top Ten Network, “In