Effect Of Sports On a Developing Child

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A developing child needs an activity that involves development, friends, and having fun. Sports are aimed to do just that. Sports allow kids to exercise on a regular basis, grow confidence in ones self through leaderships and teamwork, and also through social interactions. However, sports also do possess some negative points as well. The vast majority of our youth are involved in sports but many do not know how sports directly affect those involved. I chose this topic because sports play a major role in every child’s life. Becoming a parent is one of the hardest tasks one does in their lifetime. Deciding what things are good for your child and what things are bad for your child’s development is very nerve racking and difficult. This paper discusses both the positive and negative aspects that sports can have on a child’s development. One of the positive aspects that a sport can help a child with is health. There is a steady rise in childhood obesity and is quickly becoming an enormous problem in the United States today. In the year 2000, the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey stated that the frequency of children overweight or obese is fifteen percent. That has tripled since the year 1960 and is ever so quickly rising. Being overweight can lead to self esteem issues in a child, diabetes, and hypertension. Doing a sport, or any athletic activity, can keep a body weight at a constant and healthy level. Studies have shown that children should have up to the minimum of sixty minutes of athletic activity a day. A child that practices a healthy, active life is more than likely to become an athletic adult in the future. (Hills) Although sports have multiple positive effects, there are negatives as well. Studies have shown that more than 60% of injuries that are treated in hospitals are sports related. Each sport has injuries that are known
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