Throw in the towel on boxing for kids
Pediatricians in Canada and the U.S. are right to recommend that children and teenagers stay away from the sport.
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It’s called “the sweet science
Throw in the towel on boxing for kids
Pediatricians in Canada and the U.S. are right to recommend that children and teenagers stay away from the sport.
|Report an Error|
Share via Email
It’s called “the sweet science,” but there’s nothing appetizing about what repeated blows to the head can do to a young person’s brain. That’s why doctors specializing in children’s health, in Canada and the United States, have quite rightly declared that youth boxing deserves a knockout.
“Boxing is not an appropriate sport for children and teens,” advise the Canadian Paediatric Society and the American Academy of Pediatrics. “We recommend young people participate in sports where the prime focus is not deliberate blows to the head.”
This should be a matter of common sense, since children’s brains are more vulnerable to concussion, and with recovery taking longer than for adults. Furthermore, pediatricians report no evidence that head guards, commonly worn by young pugilists, actually reduce the incidence of concussions.
Yet youth boxing still has defenders in its corner — primarily trainers and others enthusiastic about the discipline, endurance, friendships and self-confidence that the sport is able to inspire. They note that other high-impact activities, especially hockey and football, can also cause significant injuries. And they’re right.
But there’s a difference. As the pediatricians state: “Boxing is especially dangerous because these athletes are rewarded for dedicated and deliberate hits to their opponent’s head.”
Boxing Canada doesn’t keep statistics on youth injury rates, but an analysis of the Canadian Hospitals Injury Reporting and Prevention Program showed that boxing had a higher rate of hospital admissions, between 1990 and 2007, than any other combat sport. This database, drawn from 15 hospitals across Canada, including 10 children’s hospitals, revealed 273 hospitalized boxers. Most, almost 40 per cent, were in the 15- to 18-year-old age group, with less than 1 per cent listed in the 5- to 9-year-old category.
Yes, more kids are injured playing hockey, but far more are enrolled in that sport than in the less popular activity of punching one another in the head. None should be boxing at all. That ring advice, from concerned pediatricians, should be echoed by other physicians and heeded by parents everywhere.
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