Hello, my name is Charlie Kas and I am going to be talking/informing you about youth sports. More specifically the pros and cons of youth sports and what effect they can have on a child. Now when I say “youth” I mean children between the ages 6-9. In this article I will be informing you and doing my best to share equal points about pros and cons of youth sports. Now, let's get right into it. 

Before I started writing this article I did some background research online and did some research on my own.  I also conducted an interview with my brother who played youth sports and has played sports his entire life. In the interview I asked him questions like were you too committed to winning in youth sports that it affected you in a negative way? Have sports ever taken away from time with family or friends? Sadly, he answered yes to both of these questions, but at the end of the day that is one of the many sacrifices athletes have to make throughout their careers. In other words youth sports and sports in general could take a lot of opportunities away from you but it could also give you some once in a lifetime opportunities. It just depends on how invested you are in yourself and most of all your teammates. 

Now let’s get into some facts about youth sports. According to the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) youth sports help guide kids and help them learn to follow directions and respect people. They also can provide the much needed daily exercise/physical activity kids need to stay healthy. The last reason I have from the AAP is the fact that sports help kids intellectually. For example, they put kids in an environment where they need to communicate with their teammates and youth sports/sports teams are a great way to meet new people and make new friends. Being able to talk and communicate with people is very important in life. It is good to teach these young kids to do these things at an early age; it can only benefit them later on in life.

Next we’re going to talk about some cons of youth sports that I have found with my own research. In my research I asked twenty people to take a survey I created over youth sports. One of my questions was, Have you ever felt like you were too committed or too focused on winning that it affected you in a negative way? Sadly, 50% of the people said yes. Sports can be a great thing at times but can also have some negatives like being so committed and focused on winning that you forget what the real purpose of sports are. Another thing that could prove to be an issue or problem is the fact that you might not always have a good coach. Coaches could make or break a team. At the end of the day the players only play as hard as their coaches push them. Another one of my questions was actually whether or not you have had a bad coach during your sports career. This time 85% of people answered that they have had at least one bad coach throughout their career. So it seems at the end of the day that bad coaches are just a part of sports and the longer you play the more likely you are to have or encounter a bad coach. 

Now let me share some facts and statistics about the cons of youth sports. According to the National Youth Sports Health & Safety Institute, approximately half of all injuries evaluated in pediatric sports medicine clinics are associated with overuse. Meaning that about half of all sports injuries can be prevented if you don’t overwork your body. Like I said previously a lot of athletes have felt like they were too committed or obsessed with sports that it affected them negatively. This fact just helps prove my point, only if athletes took care of their body and didn’t abuse it they might be able to have a longer sports career. Another con of youth sports comes from the University of Utah State where they say that playing sports can cause busy schedules which then likely leave’s less time for food. In turn a lot of families resort to some kind of processed or fast food after a game or practice. Which is not a good alternative for normal for or by any means healthy for your child. 

Now that you have read my article I hope you have a better understanding about youth sports. I also hope that you found it somewhat interesting. At the end of the day this is just an informative article, its meaning is not to persuade you to do one thing or another. Lastly, I just want to thank you for spending part of your day reading my article.