Kids Should Not Play Competitive Sports Essay

Did you know that 3.5 million children get injured each year by playing competitive sports? There has been a long disagreement about whether or not kids should be playing competitive sports, but I believe that kids should not play competitive sports. People that agree with kids playing competitive sports might argue that it is good because it helps/prevents obesity, helps kids make friends and gives them more time to hang out with friends, and help them in life. I do agree with those reasons, but I argue that kids should not play competitive sports because of injuries, stress, and overuse/burnout.

One reason that children should not play competitive sports, is that it can cause many injuries that can even be fatal. By playing competitive sports some people can end up with serious injuries. A survey done by

Overuse and burnout injuries usually occur in sports like baseball/softball, running, tennis, and swimming. These injuries happen due to the repetitive movements of joints, these types of injuries usually happen in practice or training. About 50% of injuries every year are in some way related to overuse and burnout. Year round training on multiple teams is also a way that youth athletes get burnt out from all of the training. For many kids their goal is to make it to the professional level of play, but the real goal for youth athletes should be to achieve lifelong physical activity and healthy competition. Most of these overuse and burnout injuries would not be happening if all of the coaches gave the proper training, playing time, and proper resting time. I have experienced overuse myself, from throwing repetitively in baseball. I did not go to the doctor or have anything diagnosed, but I could still tell something was wrong with my arm. I limited my throwing as much as possible, made sure I was throwing with the correct form, and iced it. My arm