Should Kids Play Competive/Contact Sports?

            Whether or not kids should play competitive or contact sports has been a recent topic for debate. Some argue the positive effects, and some argue the negative. Through research, I found there to be much more negative than positive effects. Sports put too much pressure on children to push themselves to their breaking point. Additionally, many children get horribly injured, in some cases even fatally. I believe kids should not play competitive or contact sports. There is too much pressure and not enough safety.

            Competitive sports put too much pressure on kids, pressure to be perfect, to keep going and to win. More often than not, kids are pressured to play even with injuries. Mark Hyman, author of “Until It Hurts: American’s Obsession with Youth Sports and How It Harms Our Kids”, says “Every year more than 3.5 million children under 15 require medical treatment for sports injuries, nearly half of which are the result of simple overuse.” Young athletes have too much pressure on them to “push through it”, but pushing through it can lead to worse injuries that could affect them for the rest of their lives. Whitney Phelps, older sister of Olympic gold medalist Michael Phelps, was a top swimmer until she burnt out her body. She swam through pain in her back for years. At 14, she found out she had two bulging spinal discs, two stress fractures and a herniated disc. She pushed through because of her coach, her mother and her dreams of competition in the Olympics, but swimming through it is what kept her from accomplishing just that. Sports put too much pressure which can lead to injury and to early burn-out.

            Even without the stress, contact sports are very unsafe. In just 2013, 8 high school football players died, as a direct result of playing. Each year over 173,000 people under 20 are treated for injuries related to sports. Rough sports are much too dangerous for young children to be playing. Kids get injured when they are young, and it affects them for the rest of their lives. In “For Children in Sports, a Breaking Point”, Jane E. Brody writes, “… young athletes are more prone to certain injuries, especially stress fractures; tendinitis; a degenerative condition called osteochondrosis; and damage to the growth plates of bones that can stunt them for life.” Contact sports are not safe enough for young kids to be playing.

            While sports have many negative effects, some argue that they  are a great way to stay healthy and fit. Herschel Walker, former NFL star, says “…sports helped transform from him from an overweight kid with a speech impediment into one of the greatest athletes of his generation.” While this is true, you can still get severely injured at any time. Almost 40% of all sports related injuries treated in hospitals are from kids ages 5 -14. 62% of children’s sports injuries happen during practice.  Contact and competitive sports are too unpredictable, kids should not be allowed to play them.

            In conclusion, children should not play highly competitive or contact sports. While they may be a fun way to stay fit, they are too high-risk for young children with vulnerable bodies to be playing, and they put too much stress on kids to do well, added to stress they already have of getting good grades, getting into college and more. They should not be risking their lives for a game.