Health beyond just food

Being considered healthy goes beyond just nutrition, it has to do with one's physical, spiritual and mental being as well. The past two posts have focused on the nutritional aspect within younger children today, but today's focus will be more on the physical aspect of health. Physical activity, I think, is so important to teach kids at a young age so that when they do move out of their parent's home they will continue to value that aspect of their life and maintain it in a healthy way. Getting children involved in a sport is a great way to do that, but now there tends to be risks associated with certain sports. The question raised in my mind because of that is this: are these risks stopping parents from allowing or even encouraging participation in athletic activities or outdoor activities?

Today I came across an article written by Fox13 in Memphis regarding Pee-Wee football and the risks that are involved with it. The story discusses how football can sometimes have a traumatic affect on a child's brain from the hits that they take while playing the sport.

I have had personal experience with this within my family when my younger brother played football. He got concussions during his Pee-Wee seasons and then another one in high school, and they were of such high concern that he had to quit playing the sport all together. However, instead of giving up on sports entirely, my parents encouraged him to play a sport that did not involve hard hitting so that he would remain active.

One thing this article does discuss is the fact that these injuries are inevitable but coaches are doing as much as possible to teach them the safest ways to continue to play this sport. Coaches can be a huge impact in the safety area, because if a kid trusts his coach with teaching him how to accurately play a sport that kids won't have to avoid the sport all together. Another huge aspect within such a dangerous sport is parents who will not push the limits of their kids but know when to pull them out of something that could potentially have a negative effect for the rest of their life.

Kids should not have to stop playing potentially harmful sports or stop being active, but just understand the limits that some team sports present.