High School Sports Research Paper

940 Words2 Pages

Determination, teamwork, competitiveness. These three traits are important aspects in succeeding in life. These important traits are all obtained by participating in competitive sports in high school. This contentious topic, on whether students should play sports has been disputed for the past years, since teen obesity started. I believe all high school students should engage in a sport, and should be encouraged to do so more. Students and teens should participate in school sports because they keep you in good shape, enhance social interaction, and help you gain important psychological benefits.
The essential reason why students should play sports is that it keeps you in a healthy physical shape. Taking care of your body and eating the right …show more content…

Some great benefits are improving self esteem, improving mood, and reducing stress and depression. Physical activity lets out chemical in your brain called dopamine that makes you feel happy and relieved. It also stimulates the production of endorphins, these are released from the pituitary gland and are released when you are feeling down or having emotional stress. These endorphins help fight back the depression that your body faces. Playing sports can also improve your body image, which leads to an increase in self esteem. You feel much better on how you look to others and to yourself. It also helps you in school, Kevin Bliss wrote in his article, Does Playing Sports Help Improve Grades? “The study, which included 317 students, showed that the fittest kids scored nearly 30 percent higher on standardized tests than the least-fit group”(Bliss), this is due to increased concentration you gain while you play sports. Playing competitive sports can be very helpful to your life because of the physiological benefits you …show more content…

A drawback to playing competitive sports is that it can be very dangerous for teens because of the high risk for permanent damage to your brain and body. In Luce Westminister article, The Disadvantages of Children in Sports,“According to the National Center for Sports Safety, over 3 million children under the age of 14 incur some type of injury as a result of sports”(Westminster). Another drawback to competitive sports are the high costs. Parents of kids who play sports spend at least an average of $671 dollars per year.(High Cost of Youth Sports). Parent’s also spend over $1000 on equipment and uniforms per child. Due to the high costs of sports, many kids who enjoy playing sports may not be able to afford to pay the hefty prices. Finally, the final drawback of playing sports is the time commitment parents and students have to put in. Going to practices can take a huge toll on parents’ and the kids’ time. These activities take away school time and time spent with family and friends. Kids will have to stay up doing their homework and this takes away their sleep times. Although there are many benefits of playing sports, there are numerous disadvantages to competitive

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