Should Kids Play Competitive Sports At A Young Age?

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Do you think that getting injured in a competitive sport is rare or that it couldn 't possibly happen to you? Well if you do then you 're wrong. More than 3.5 million children ages 14 and younger get hurt annually playing sports or participating in recreational activities. That is why I don 't think kids should play competitive sports at a young age. They can get stuck with long term effects, some of the competitive sports played are dangerous ,and with all of the Pressure to be the best at a sport, it will cause them to become burned out and no longer like that activity. The main reason for my argument kids shouldn 't start competitive sports at a young age is because they can get stuck with long term effects. “Sustaining repeated head impacts during a critical neurodevelopmental period may increase the risk of later life cognitive impairment.” (Minnpost, by Susan Perry.) When a child gets repeatedly injured the risks of having long term effects are increased. Another …show more content…

Another reason for my argument kids shouldn 't start competitive sports at a young age is because of the dangers of some sports that young kids are involved in. Several NFL players have stated that the game is so risky they wouldn 't let their own kids play. (Scope Magazine, By Jennifer Shotz.) As a matter of fact Michael Keck, a college football player, never played professional football but was diagnosed with Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy. The Alzheimer 's like disease. (CNN, January 2016.) This shows you even if it isn 't professional, specialized sports can still be dangerous. One study stated, Among athletes ages 5 to 14, 28 percent of percent of football players, 25 percent of baseball players, 22 percent of soccer players, 15 percent of basketball players, and 12 percent of softball players were injured while playing their respective sports. (Stopsportsinjuries.org, Youth sports injuries statistics.) No matter what age or what sport you play, getting injured is part of the terms and