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Safety Tips 

To help your child avoid injury while playing football, follow these safety tips from the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and other sports and health organizations. (Note: Adults should heed this safety guidance, too.)

• Before your child starts a training program or plays competitive football, take him or her to the doctor for a physical exam. The doctor can help assess any special injury risks your child may have.
• Make sure your child wears all the required safety gear every time he or she plays and practices. All tackle football players must wear: a helmet; pads for the shoulders, hips, tailbone, and knees; thigh guards; and a mouth guard with a keeper strap. Talk to your child's coach to find out what kind of cleats are recommended or required in your child's league. If your child wears glasses, talk to your eye doctor about special eyewear for sports.
• Insist that your child warm up and stretch before playing.
• Teach your child not to play through pain. If your child gets injured, see your doctor. Follow all the doctor's orders for recovery, and get the doctor's OK before your child returns to play. This is especially important for brain injuries--getting a second brain injury before the first one has healed can be fatal.
• Make sure first aid is available at all games and practices.
• Talk to and watch your child's coach. Coaches should enforce all the rules of the game. They should never allow illegal blocking (pulling a player down by the knees or grabbing the face mask), tackling from behind, or "spearing" (using the top of the helmet to tackle). Coaches should also encourage safe play and understand the special injury risks that young players face.
• Above all, keep football fun. Putting too much focus on winning can make your child push too hard and risk injury.

 Whether your child plays football on an organized team or with a few friends in the park, there are still injury risks. Unfortunately, few children who play in backyard football games follow the safety rules observed in league play. As a parent, set rules for informal play, including these:

• Wear helmets and pads.
• Play only with children of similar size and age.
• Play on grass, never in the street or in a parking lot.
• Stick to touch or flag football--they can be less dangerous than tackle.

You can help reinforce these rules by setting a good example. When you play football--or any other sport--always follow the rules and wear appropriate safety gear.

Who Is Affected?

Studies have shown that 15 to 20 percent of players age 8 to 14 are injured during the football season. More than 150,000 football players under age 15 are treated in hospital emergency departments each year. Among tackle football players on high school teams, the injury rate has been reported as high as 64 percent.

Sprains and strains are the most frequent injuries among players of all age groups. For young children, injuries to the arms, hands, and shoulders are most common; older players most often injure the lower extremities. Knee injuries, which total approximately 92,000 each year, often lead to chronic knee pain.

Concussions make up about 5 percent of reported football injuries. A player who has sustained a concussion is four to six times more likely to sustain another one, and getting a second brain injury before the first one has healed can prove fatal. As seen in the boxing profession, repeated concussions sustained over a long period of time can lead to serious impairments.

All football leagues, from Pop Warner to professional, require safety equipment and prohibit tackling from behind and "spearing" (using the top of the helmet to tackle). Before these safety measures were in place, many more football players sustained disabling injuries. These measures have also reduced deaths among football players by more than 75 percent.

Safety Resources 

American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons

The AAOS fact sheet on football (www.aaos.org/wordhtml/pat_educ/football.htm) provides a list of equipment required by most youth football leagues. AAOS's phone number is 1-800-346-2267.

Brain Injury Association

BIA's fact sheet about sports and concussion safety (http://www.biausa.org/Prevfacts.htm) provides data on brain injuries for several sports, including football. Call BIA at 1-800-444-6443.

National Athletic Trainers Association

On NATA's home page (www.nata.org), you'll find a link to injury information, including statistics and prevention tips. You can reach NATA at 214-637-6282.

National SAFE KIDS Campaign

Visit the SAFE KIDS home page (www.safekids.org) to access fact sheets on sports and recreation injuries. Call SAFE KIDS at 202-662-0600.

NYSSF (www.nyssf.org) has a variety of fact sheets on sports safety available for purchase. NYSSF's phone number is 617-277-1171.

References 

The data and safety tips in this fact sheet were obtained from the following sources:

American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons. Football. Available at www.aaos.org/wordhtml/pat_educ/football.htm. Accessed July 6, 1999.

American Academy of Pediatrics. Sports Medicine: Health care for young athletes. Elk Grove Village, IL: The Academy, 1991:150-152.

Caine D, Caine C, Lindner K, editors. Epidemiology of Sports Injuries. Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics, 1996:41-62.

CDC. Sports-related recurrent brain injuries--United States. Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report 1994;46(10):224-227.

National Pediatric Trauma Registry. Football Injuries. NPTR fact sheet #5. March 1994. Available at www.nemc.org/rehab/factshee.htm. Accessed July 7, 1999.