The Negative Effects Of Youth Athletes And Concussions In Youth Football

“CDC reports show that the amount of reported concussions has doubled in the last 10 years. The American Academy of Pediatrics has reported that emergency room visits for concussions in kids ages 8 to 13 years old has doubled, and concussions have risen 200 percent among teens ages 14 to 19 in the last decade” (Head Case, 2013). It is reported that between 5-10% of athletes will suffer concussion during any given sports season. Football is the most common sport with concussion risk for males with a 75% chance. It has also been found that 78% of concussions happen during games as opposed to during practices (Science Daily, 2014).

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).

A concussion is, “a type of traumatic brain injury—or TBI—caused by a bump, blow, or jolt to the head or by a hit to the body that causes the head and brain to move rapidly back and forth” (“What is a Concussion?”). Concussions can cause headaches, nausea, dizziness, and sleepiness. Although these symptoms seem terrible, these are only short term symptoms of a mild concussion. More severe concussions can cause life-long problems with memory, learning, coordination, emotion, and even sight (“What is a Concussion?”). One poor play can cause a severe concussion and, furthermore, a permanent end to the life the player knew before the incident. While not all concussions are that critical, every concussion has consequences. Unfortunately, thousands of high school players face these consequences annually. Studies show that, “Some 67,000 high school football players suffer concussions every year, according to official tallies, and many more concussions go unreported” (“Farewell to Football”). Even if an exceptional football player beats those odds, one in every twenty NFL players suffers from at least one concussion in his career (“Farewell to Football”). Players under the age of eighteen are even more likely to experience severe brain damage from the game. According to ESPN, getting hit hard on the field can be the equivalent to being hit over the head

For this research synthesis I choose to write about concussions in football, specifically in youth football. I chose to focus more on youth football because concussions are such a big problem within the football world, so instead of focusing on them at a professional level it should be looked into at the entry level. If things can be done in youth football to prevent or lower the risk of concussions, then those steps should be taken. The main thing I wish to focus on is if tackling in youth football should be allowed. I came to choose this topic because I was deciding between whether or not football players should have to go to college before the NFL or concussions in football, but I chose concussions in football. Concussions in football was the topic I ended up choosing because I felt there would be more information about this topic. Also, I chose a topic dealing with sports because I grew up playing them, so I have always like them and I am a sport administration major, so I picked something that is talked about a lot in the sports world. This is an important issue because concussions can cause serious, lifelong medical issues, so they are something that needs to be addressed. My classmates should care because most of them have either played football or had a family member that played and they could have been effected by the negatives of concussions.

While in recent years there has been increasing awareness of the topic of concussions there is still much to be accomplished in the way of education of youth sport participants including

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.

Thesis: Youth and High School football teams are not adequately protected from the danger of concussions and head trauma.

Concussions are rapidly becoming more and more of a concern in sports today. This is especially true in the sport of football, youth, amateur, and professional. What is a concussion? How do they happen? A concussion is a traumatic brain injury that occurs when the head is impacted, hit, struck, or shaken. Inside the skull, this violent movement of the brain is very detrimental to the brain itself. When a concussion occurs the brain literally bounces or twists in the skull causing damage to the brain cells, which in turn cause chemical changes in the brain. These changes make the brain more sensitive to other injuries or stress. All athletes participating in contact sports are at risk

“Studies show that approximately one in five high school football players suffer concussions or more serious brain injury during their brief high school careers. The rate at the collegiate level is one in twenty” (Longe, 965). Even though this study showed twenty present of high school football players recorded concussions, many concussions go unreported or unrecognized. Dr. Wayne Langburt surveyed Pennsylvania High School football players after their season. The survey was anonymous and the term concussion was replaced with a generic definition. “The share of players who claimed to have suffered a concussion the previous season was not four percent or even fourteen percent, but was forty-seven percent! Those who received concussions claimed an average of 3.4 each season” (Nowinski,

After doing research many studies suggest that youth football should be canceled out or the rules should be changed, but in my opinion those results are impractical, lazily thought of. It also shows the disconnect between the research and actual people that have had concussions from football, or is playing football right now and has had a teammate or a friend that has had results from concussions while playing. I believe that to truly understand the dangers of a concussion youth football, there needs to be a little more than just research, there needs to be a connection with someone that has played football. There needs to be some form of understanding and relation to that person to understand why he would even play a sport that would treat

One of the more major concerns about players getting injured in football games is that they have faulty protection on their bodies. Studies have shown that since the start of football, players would get hurt every game. Back then they only have leather helmets. Nowadays, the NFL uses hard plastic with thick padding. Injuries have significantly went down since then but helmets are still a problem today. According to one article they state that “An estimated 1.6-3.8 million sports and recreation related concussions occur in the United States each year.” With people starting to see and hear these scary results, many are starting to rally and protest against professional and recreational football. They don’t want their kids to be exposed to such harm. Some people are even saying they want football to be abolished.

Head coming forcibly into contact with another and concussions caused by physically coming into contact with other players in sports are a swiftly escalating epidemic among young athletes. When debatable cases corresponding to CTE are left undetected, concussions can lead to the condition of long-term brain damage and may even prove untreatable. Athletes are left defenseless and useless without facts provided without hesitation accessible about their own health. Most concussions resolve with rest within a week to ten days; however, about 10% of concussions take longer to heal and some may have long-term consequences. While research is ongoing to help identify the best approach to changing the culture of concussion in sports, there are action steps that coaches, parents, health care providers, and school professionals can take now to help keep young athletes safe and supported as they pursue the sports they love to play. A shortened play clock might also make obese linemen lose weight, since there’d be less standing around and more hustling. And since all players would be more tired, they would have less strength when delivering hits. This will allow coaches would to control the basic strategy, but the players would control its application, communicating with one another more and engaging their otherwise static athletic

The topic that I chose to focus on in my major was the rise of concussions in youth sports. The essay that I will be analyzing is called “State Experiences Implementing Youth Sports Concussion Laws: Challenges, Success, and Lessons for Evaluating Impact” written by Kerri McGowan Lowery and Stephanie R. Morain published Fall 2014. The article is insightful and informative for a student pursuing a career in exercise science field because I learned new information that was previously unknown before such as the percentage of hospital visits by youth with these types of injuries, the people that are behind the scenes such as coaches and staff, and who is in charge of setting the rules for youth sports injuries.

One thousand children suffer sports related concussions in just the state of Minnesota each year (Olson). With cases of concussions in youth sports becoming more and more frequent, concern on the subject is rising. Though all sports present a high risk, “football still causes the most concussions” (Emerson). In the documentary Frontline: Football High, director Rachel Dretzin demonstrates that high school football sets excessive pressure over aspiring teen athletes and presents a high risk of injury through concussion. By using actualities, interviews and archival footage in her film, Dretzin conveys the message that concussions in high school football are common, dangerous and worth exposing.

The popularity of soccer has continued to increase year after year due to large events such as the World Cup and the Euro Cup. Now, fans are demanding more of a show rather than just a simple game. Due to this demand, players have been looking for different ways to up the ante, most specifically the way goals are scored. It has been more common to see goals scored off bicycle kicks and headers leading to an increase of injuries such as concussions due to heading. As these types of injuries are becoming more common, and has recently been seen in younger players as well, the question has become whether or not heading should be removed from youth soccer. In Stanley Kay’s article “With concussion reform at forefront, should youth headers be nixed?” from Sports Illustrated featured on September 10, 2014 he uses pathos along with logos to