Youth Sports Injuries

Not many people know the actual definition for the term “sports injuries” but “the term sports injury, in the broadest sense, refers to the kinds of injuries that most commonly occur during sports or exercise” (Bellenir 67). “Nearly thirty million children and adolescents participate in youth sports in the United States” (Freemantle), this is a large amount of kids the play sports. “By age thirteen, seventy percent of kids drop out of youth sports. Top three reasons: Adults, coaches, and parents” (International), but why are so many kids dropping out of sports because of adults, coaches and parents? “Although sixty-two percent of organized sports-related injuries during practice, one-third of parents do not have their children take the same

“Among athletes age five to fourteen, twenty-eight percent of football players, twenty-five percent of baseball players, twenty-two percent of soccer players, fifteen percent of basketball players, and twelve percent of softball players were injured while playing their respective sports” (International) an injury can happen in any sport, it does not matter what the sport is. “More than 3.5 million kids under age fourteen receive medical treatment for sports injuries each year” (International). Sports injuries can physically, socially, or even mentally change an individual’s life.

A sports injury can be very serious especially to the human body. “When an injury occurs, it may result in weakness due to tissue damage and disuse, in addition to decreased control over the damaged body part” (Bellenir 257). “Sports-related in children and young adults cause 2.6 million visits to the nation’s hospital emergency departments annually” (Shannon 614). Many athletes in the United States have to go to the hospital for these negative effects of sports injuries. “High school athletes account for an estimated two million injuries and five-hundred thousand doctor visits and thirty thousand hospitalizations each year”

“A child or adolescent psychological response can be disastrous” (Freemantle). When an athlete is having a mental breakdown, people can see that something is wrong based on the way they are playing. “Poor sport performance increase a student-athlete’s depression and the pressure to perform better” (Bellenir 21). Many parents pressure their child to play better or to be better than other athletes and parents thinks it good for the athlete but it’s really just pressuring the athlete to do more than she/he can already do in the field/court. “Although most mood disorders primarily involve low mood or depression, bipolar disorders consist of episodes of abnormally elevated (high) moods, in addition to the characteristics low moods” (Bellenir 20). Various moods have different effects on individuals ranging from small impacts to very serious ones. “A student athlete may become depressed after an injury, but the relationship between depression and injury may also occur in reverse order” (Bellenir 21). After an injury, the first thing the athlete would want to do is get back on the field/court and knowing she/he can not do that can really mentally affect the individual and stress him/her out. “Depression in many student athletes occurs for non-sports related reasons” (Bellenir 21). Not all mental effects happen on the field/court, most of them occur at home or even school. “Children who have