The Hazards of Childhood Sports

While childhood obesity is becoming a greater threat, the American Association of Pediatrics wants parents to become more aware of problems associated with children's sports.

Between 30 and 45 million children ages 6-18 are involved in organized and recreational sports each year. Overtraining, burnout, and injuries are becoming more and more common among children.

At one time, tendinitis, bursitis, and stress fractures were something only heard in pro athletes; such things are now heard in high school locker rooms. Some overuse injuries are exclusive to children: Little League elbow-damage to the growth cartilage in the elbow joint caused by repetitive whipping motions of the arm, osteochondritis dissecans of the knee and ankle (repetitive grinding together of bones that causes damage to the growing surface cartilage and may result in pieces of dead bone and cartilage dropping into the joint and wreaking havoc), Osgood Schlatter's syndrome (inflammation at the point where the tendon connects the kneecap to the very top of the shinbone) and os calcis apophysitis (inflammation at the point where the Achilles tendon attaches to the heel).

The a report in the AAP journal Pediatrics stated that pediatricians should "encourage athletes to strive to have at least one to two days off per week from competitive athletics, sport-specific training and competitive practice (scrimmage) to allow them to recover both physically and psychologically."

Children should also take at least two to three months away from a specific sport during the year. Their training time, number of repetitions, or distance should not increase by more than 10 percent each week.

In addition, the report said that doctors and parents should encourage then athlete to participate in only one team during a season. If part of a travel team, the child should follow the same guildlines as if they were on one team.