Head injuries in football
My wife and I are in a continuing debate over whether or not we should allow our son who is 12 to play football. My wife is freaked out in general about the violence of it but all the recent medical reports about long term brain damage has pushed her over the edge. Anyone out there want to give me some arguing points?
There are inherent dangers to any sport that you child plays. Concussions are not very common at the youth level and in fact, football is safer many other sports and activities (i.e Bicycling, skiing, skateboarding, etc.). It has less catostrophic injuries than gymnastics, cheerleading, or baseball. Some sports catch the eye of the media a lot more readily than others. A few years back, it was the soccer that was raising all of the concussion concerns.
The concussions in sports are very overrated. I agree with Coach K. You are more apt to get hurt on a skateboard than in a youth football game. also, there are now special helmets that you can purchase to prevent head injuries. Parents need to stop being wimps and let their kids grow up! What do you think parents were doing in the 50s and 60s and 70s? we are all fine now and we all played youth sports like football.
You always have to be mindful of head injuries, especially in sports. In regards to concussions, you see more of them at the high school level, where some athletes are just stronger, faster, and more powerful than others. As you increase the ranks (pop warner, JV football, Varsity Football, College Football, Semi-Pro, NFL), you increase the chances of injury.
Can't help you here, my sophmore was playing varisty this year and suffered two concussions this year, however as the awareness for sports related head injuries has become higher, equipment seems to be following suit and as a parent you are not stuck with just the school issued helmets you can purchase your own. They make concussion resistant helmets.