All Articles by Brooke de Lench

Middle and high school students who are both bullies and victims of bullying are three times more likely than students who are neither to seriously consider suicide, intentionally injure themselves, report being physically abused by a family member and witnessing violence in their family, and to use drugs and alcohol, says the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

While much has changed in youth sports over the past fifty years, what has not changed is the hardwired instinct of mothers to want to nurture and protect their children from harm.

Students with a concussion may have difficulty retaining new information and retrieving information when needed. To help a student remember better, here's a list of "Top 10" cognitive strategies for parents to give to teachers.

Overuse injuries account for fifty percent of all youth sports injuries, but half are preventable, says the National Athletic Trainers' Association in a new position statement.

MomsTeam Founder and Publisher, Brooke de Lench, talks about the difficult decision to pull a son with a history of multiple concussions and learning disabilities out of high school football and lacrosse, and says parents should have a right to expect when they entrust their children to a sports program that it will take reasonable precautions to protect them against harm. In other words, parents have a right to expect that the entire team to whom they entrust their children's safety — including the national governing body for the child's sport, the state association, the athletic or club director, the athletic trainer (if there is one), and especially the coaches - are part of the concussion solution, not part of the problem.

A concussion may result from a direct blow to the head, face, neck, or elsewhere on the body where the force of the blow is transmitted to the head. Concussions occur from blows to different parts of the head and of varying magnitude.

The National Athletic Equipment Reconditioners Association (NAERA)has announced that it will no longer accept football helmets for reconditioning and recertification which are more than 10-years old.  The policy, adopted at the group's annual meeting, will become effective at the start of the reconditioning season on September 1, 2011, as many schools have already paid for their helmets to be reconditioned for use this fall.

The competition for rosters spots on fall sports teams seems to be more ferocious than ever. Tryouts pose a particular challenge to young athletes still playing summer sports. Here are some tips for parents on how they can help their child perform at their best during tryouts from MomsTeam's Brooke de Lench.