Parents want to find new preoccupations for their children, but most of the times they end up pushing the kids too much. As a result, children’s health might be severely affected if you don’t follow U.S. pediatricians’ advice on how to properly raise young ballplayers. The report was officially published by the American Academy of Pediatrics on Tuesday and is now available to all parents who want to protect their kids from possible sport injuries.
Baseball and softball represent the safest sports for young children to practice. However, the fact that kids are stretching their arms too much and learning new skills before their bodies have reached maturity might lead to problems in the future. In order to avoid this, parents and coaches should learn to moderate their kids’ moves and help them prevent injuries.
Pediatricians claim that softball and baseball are usually safe sports because children don’t get hurt as often as they do in other sports. However, statistics show that injuries contracted during these games are, most of the times, more severe than the rest. The majority of the young players suffer broken bones and concussions. Some of them even miss their chances of becoming great baseball players because they force themselves too much in childhood and their bodies suffer irreversible modifications.
It is important to protect the small ones with special helmets during practices. Metal spikes should be avoided, so children would not hurt each other. Among the first things that children need to know when practicing these sports is how to dodge fastballs coming towards them.
A doctor needs to be present all the time on the field to check children in case they suffer a concussion. The sports club should also have an automated external defibrillator (AED) in case the boys’ heart rhythm is affected by a ball taken in the chest.
Kids who play as pitchers should not pitch too often, especially if their arms are tired. The numbers of pitches per day should not be bigger than 65. In addition, children should practice pitching only three days per week.
