Health & Safety

On June 28, 2011, Governor Bobby Jindal signed S.B. 189 into law, adding Louisiana to the list of states (twenty-eight as of September 1, 2011) that have enacted strong youth sports concussion safety laws.

Research suggests that static stretching, far from being the best way for athletes to warm up and prepare for the stress and strain sports and exercise puts on their bodies, may actually increase the risk of injury. Dynamic warm-up and soft tissue manipulation are recommended instead.

High school athletes, especially males, are at the highest risk of suffering exertional heat illness requiring treatment in U.S. hospital emergency rooms, reports the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Most healthy children and adolescents can safely participate in outdoor sports and other physical activities in a wide range of challenging warm to hot weather, but there are numerous factors that put them at increased risk of exertional heat illness.

Sports medicine practitioners throw around a lot of different terms when it comes to heat illness.  Here are the terms as defined by the American Academy of Pediatrics in its newly revised Policy Statement on Climactic Heat Stress and Exercising Children and Adolescents.

Exertional heat illness among youth athletes is preventable if coaches, parents and other adults take appropriate precautions, says the American Academy of Pediatrics in a new report.

With fall sports beginning around the country, it is critically important for parents to be pro-active when it comes to preventing heat illness.  "Parents need to be empowered to question coaches," says Dr. Susan Yeargin.  "Coaches are often viewed as 'knowing best.' But that isn't always the case."

So far in the summer of 2011, at least five athletes and one coach have died of heat stroke.  Heat illness, however, is one of the most preventable youth sports injuries.  Here are ten ways parents can help keep their child safe in the heat.

A handy list of ten hydration tips for youth athletes from MomsTeam's Dr. Susan Yeargin.

On July 27, 2011, D.C. Mayor Vincent Gray signed into law the Athletic Concussion Protection Act of 2011, adding the District of Columbia to the list of states that have passed strong youth sports concussion safety legislation since May 2009.