Tackle Football: Despite the Risks, Parents Should Allow Their Children to Play
In the past 10 years, the argument for banning youth tackle football has continued to pick up steam. Every year advertisements are posted, conferences are held and less children are playing football. To the naked eye, the statistics look quite scary, but they do not tell the whole story. Yes, 35% of high school, college, or professional football players who have played tackle football have ended up with brain trauma (concussions, CTE, concussion like symptoms, headaches,etc), and it is also true that the life expectancy of an average NFL player is 70 years old. When examining these statistics, one must also consider the 55% decrease in crime rate amongst children
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Her answer was expected, but nevertheless quite interesting. She responded “because their is a risk of serious injury for my children”. The interesting aspect of this answer is only seen when you look more deeply into it. While their is risk in allowing children to play football, their is risk in every aspect of life. Every year thousands of people are lost due to tragic car crashes, yet people do not stop driving. While their is a risk in driving, people continue to take the chance due to the benefits of driving. Football is also a case where the reward outweighs the risk. Every year an average of 2,000 college football players are given free education to play football for their respective school, giving children an education who do not have the means to attend university. The scholarship program in american football is brilliant, it pushes high school children to strive for their dreams and work hard both on the field and in the classroom. Without tackle football, thousands of children across North America would not reap the benefits of a free education due to
Bone crushing forces are delivered to football players of all ages and sizes. According to ESPN, the average Pop Warner football player will experience 107 collisions per season in games, with some collisions being upwards of 80 G's, or the same forces that college football players experience. For comparison, NASA astronauts only experience six to eight G’s of force when they leave earth’s atmosphere, yet people still think it’s okay to let kids as young as 8 experience forces up to ten times what astronauts experience. According to Livestrong, which is a foundation that promotes an active and healthy lifestyle, it says that because of the constant forces being applied to players’ joints and ligaments that they are very susceptible to torn ligaments, and pulled muscles. These injuries can develop into severe arthritis and joint pain later in life if the players endure enough trauma. Ricky Watters-a former NFL player for the San Francisco 49ers-gave his football testimony recently, he said, “I’ve suffered five concussions, tore two ligaments in my knee, I have five pins in my left foot and a metal envelope encasing my femur, I also suffered a cracked sternum and have failing kidneys at the age of 43. I’ve played when I know I shouldn’t have, but now I suffer pain from head to toe every day of my life.” Now parents, the decision is up to you, do you want your kids suffering the same way as Ricky
Is tackle football too dangerous for kids who aren’t even fully developed? Back then, when it came to sports, safety was never one of the main concerns. For example, baseball was played for over half a century without requiring helmets. Recently, society has started to worry about future generations and whether some activities will have long-lasting effects on them, such as football. Although many are advocates for safety, others are arguing that kids should be able to play what they want. While tackle football has been proven to be detrimental to the youth’s health, especially for children under the age of 13, critics have questioned and discussed whether other sports are going to be next and how they can possibly prevent football’s future modifications.
Football is America’s most popular sport; however, recently controversy has been arising pertaining to the injuries and violence connected to football. Within the last five years the topic of allowing youth to play football has blown up. Though the injuries vary dramatically, what has really been the key subject is head related injuries, typically concussions. Parents around the country are debating whether or not their children should play the sport, specifically contact football. Although football and most sports in general have injury related risks attached with it, there are still arguments why kids around the country should be able to enjoy one of the most liked sports. Reasons such as building teamwork, physical activity and free will can lead to why many believe that there should not be a dispute regarding football.
In recent years, there has been a backlash from all kinds of doctors throughout the world that believe the National Football League or NFL needs to make adjustments to the way they treat head injuries, specifically concussions. A concussion is a brain injury characterized by an onset of impairment of cognitive and/or physically functioning and is caused by hits around the head and neck area. This NFL is under destress because of numerous studies that show concussions can lead to a large amount brain injuries way after the player has played his last game. However, this isn't just a problem the NFL is facing, the real problem is our youth contact sports and head-related injuries. High school athletes are extremely more exposed to concussions than
Despite such an increased concern for this topic many people are aware of the possible implications of placing their children in football or playing the game themselves yet they still continue to do so. Many players are told from a young age to simply be tough and suck it up, “[…] youth profess that the game and the team are more important than their individual health and they may play through a concussion to avoid letting down their teammates, coaches, schools and parents” (Breslow,
Holding your child out of tackle football until an older age to keep him from getting brain damage later on in life is a great idea. Keeping your child out of tackle football until an older age can help prevent many different negative symptoms like “like developing thinking and memory problems as an adult” (Hard Knocks). This is important so your child can
Have you ever thought about the safety of your friends or family that play such a rough sport such as football, and are scared that they can have an injury that can permanently hurt them forever such as a concussion that can ultimately lead to a brain disease. Well that is the reason why not as many parents aren't letting their kids play football. At little league and such a small age they aren't happening as often but are still an issue but at a bigger stage such as the NFL they are a huge issue and occur more than they should. Ever since the NFL and Riddell have been making stronger and supposedly safer helmets concussions have been happening more than ever. Also researchers from (“Frontline”) say about
In the world of football, big hits are something that are looked at in a positive light. They are seen as a way of asserting dominance over other players and it is celebrated by teammates. Big hits are a very crucial, almost necessary, part of the game that millions of people gather to watch every Sunday. However, in the past decade, the NFL and other organization have realized that concussions can lead to very serious problems later in life. One of these problems is known as Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE). It is a degenerative brain disease, much like Alzheimer’s, that mainly effects individuals in high contact sports such as boxing or football. Over time, this connection between concussions and CTE has become more common knowledge and more people have started asking the question “do the risks of children playing football outweigh the benefits?”. The answer to this question is yes, football is entirely too violent for children to be playing. According to “Big Hits, Broken Dreams”, one in ten football players gets a concussion, and 35% of players have more than one. The video also states that only 50% of high schools in the United States have a certified athletic trainer on the field (CNN, 2012). If concussions are really a concern for the schools, then why are there not more athletic trainers on staff at these schools to deal with sports injuries? This also forces the public to question these schools even more because if they are willing to cut costs and not hire a
The safety of young football players for years has been a long growing concern and controversy for parents, players, high school coaches and school officials, and as well as NFL coaches and medical professionals in America. Parents worry about their children getting injured or concussions during the game. Furthermore, many parents believe that football can be safer and that the organization of football is not doing enough to protect players and their safety. However, to some football players concussions are not a big issue. Some players are too worried about their playing time to realize the consequences of getting concussions repeatedly. Therefore, some football players do not tell the coaches about their concussions. In addition, coaches also have a problem with the safety of football affecting their programs. Some coaches fear that football programs will shut down because of the controversy of how football can lead to brain damage. Besides parents, players, and coaches, doctors have a big say in the controversy. Neurologists, who are specialists in the disorders of nerves and the nervous system, have recently studied the link between football and brain damage. According to Jacob Vanlandingham, who is the founder and president of Prevacus Incorporated, a company who primarily studies concussions, said that “Doctors diagnose approximately 67,000 concussions in high school football players every year” (Vanlandingham, p.1). Nevertheless, some stakeholders, including ex-football players, believe that everything has already been done to make football as safe as possible. Football organizations have made new rules and placed new programs in order to keep young players healthy and to keep football programs from shutting down. The big controversial question that all stakeholders are asking is, “Is football doing enough to protect young children?”
There’s no doubt that concussions in football has become a major problem, not just for the professional athletes, but for kids of all ages from age 8 to 19. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has shown that concussion have doubled in the last decade and The American Academy of Pediatrics says that, “emergency room visits for concussions in children ages 8 to 13 years old has doubled, and concussions have risen 200 percent among teens ages 14 to 19 in the last decade” (Keith Dunlap, The Oakland Press). This shows that the seriousness of concussions is not just an issue at a pro level but an issue throughout all levels of play. The risk is definitely present when you play football but it shouldn’t stop parents from letting their children participate in the sport. Playing organized sports such as football isn’t just a place to get injured, it’s a place where your children can learn the importance of teamwork, sportsmanship, toughness, competitiveness, they learn succeed, and also they learn about failure. The parents who don’t allow their children to play sports don’t let their kids learn about these important lessons of organized sports. Football is also a way for kids to take their anger and struggles out in the game and help them express themselves. It can also be a way for kids in bad situations to get a way out, to try and reach the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow.
One reason I would not let my son play football is because it promotes violence. “I hate to say it, but no “heads up” campaign or the threat of a penalty or a fine will reduce football’s inherent violence” (Fujita 3) Some people go into football not knowing the violence and pain that come with it. Professional football players were unaware of the dangers that concussions can cause, while the NFL knows about the consequences that can happen when a player get concussed. “In August , ESPN pulled its name and logo from the “League of Denial,” a “Frontline” documentary about how the N.F.L., handled -or, more appropriately mishandled - the concussion crisis among its players.” (Sandomir 1) Violence is praised through the stands when someone gets pushed to the floor and seriously hurt. Football players are unaware of the dangers that come with getting a concussion, but the NFL knows all and lets them get into this danger for the sake of entertainment. The NFL hides the truth and mishandled cases of players, because they know the consequences and don’t want to be charged for it, leaving the players clueless for what could happen next.
Amidst every human attempt at conveying ideas, the novel remains one of the most effective means. Countless styles of writing have been created for this very reason. One such style involves a juxtaposition between plot and other elements, which is utilized in John Steinbeck's The Grapes of Wrath. In it, there are intercalary chapters spaced in between the book's main chapters about the migration of the Joads. They describe the migrant plight objectively and communicate successfully because they give the story a sense of fullness, and strike the reader in a way that makes its themes poignant.
Football is a rough sport. Many fans of the game watch it for the hard hits. These hard hits and the potential for injury is part of what makes the game so exciting. Some people say that football is too brutal and should be banned. Parents all over the United States don’t allow their children to play because of the risk of head injuries. Others allow their sons, and every now and then their daughters, to play and risk injury for a chance to earn a college scholarship and for a small percentage of players, the chance to play in the National Football League (NFL).
Would you be willing to play a sport that could potentially end your life at any moment? In any sport, it is noted that you are more prone to injury versus the average person since you are putting your body at risk. It is known that football is one of the most dangerous sports because it has a high-risk for concussions. On an average, about 47 percent of athletes who play high school football receive sports-related concussions. SInce 1997, 50 high school level and younger football players were pronounced dead after complications due to their concussions. Because of these intriguing statistics, the sport of football should be banned. Football should be banned as a whole because of health concerns regarding concussions, long-term effects from concussions, and mental disorders.
The United States is increasingly becoming a multiethnic, multicultural group of citizens. Life is no longer similar for all individuals. As people migrate they bring with them their cultural views, beliefs and language (Bhugra and Becker, 2005). In order to live together with respect, dignity and without prejudice for all, the country has had to educate itself on the beliefs and values of these vast cultures migrating to what they perceive as a land of opportunity whether this be for economic, education, or political reasons. For the most part in today’s world, cultural groups are intertwined in where they live, work, and attend school. To maintain a civil society, awareness