Cheerleading -- not for the faint of heart
Categories: Teens & tweens, Fun & activities, Health & safety
What's the most dangerous sport for high school girls? It's not what you might guess. It's not soccer, softball, or even kickboxing -- it's cheerleading. It turns out, according to a new report, that cheerleading accounts for nearly two thirds of all catastrophic sports injuries over the last twenty-five years among high school girls. Perhaps that explains something about our current president.Don't think this is about twisted ankles and broken fingernails, either. We're talking death and dismemberment here. Admittedly, strains and sprains account for more than half of the injuries, but it's still no walk in the park. Of the more than one hundred fatal, disabling, or otherwise serious injuries suffered by high school girls, two thirds took place amongst cheerleaders.
Cheerleading has changed in recent years, becoming more gymnastic in nature. This has contributed to the increase in injuries. According to Dr. Frederick O. Mueller, who lead the research team that produced the report, "If these cheerleading activities are not taught by a competent coach and keep increasing in difficulty, catastrophic injuries will continue to be a part of cheerleading."
When I was in high school, I chose the swim team over football -- no three hundred pound guys trying to knock you down and jump on you, plus there are all the female swimmers running around in their swimsuits. I think I'll encourage the same choice for my kids.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Jan Bay 8-12-2008 @ 10:38PM
I could submit pics of the bruises on my niece to back up this story. She's a cheerleader and stays black and blue pretty much year round because when she's not actually cheering at the games, she's going to gymnastics to prepare for ball season or tryouts. If I were her mother I would encourage other activities over cheerleading, but I don't see it happening.
Jan from http://www.unique-baby-gear-ideas.com/
Reply
Linda 8-13-2008 @ 9:06AM
My daughter was a cheerleader. It is the "fliers" that get hurt, not the girls who "base." And the fliers don't get hurt if they have a good coach who can teach them to fly safely as well as base safely. This guy who wrote the article sounds like he is way too much in touch with his feminine side. You can drown swimming...probably best to just sit and be a couch potato.
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Meghan 8-13-2008 @ 9:38AM
Actually Linda ANYONE can get hurt in a stunting scenario. My daughter is a flyer and she has punched, kicked and poked her bases and spotters (but of course she is the object flying through the air obviously she is the one doing the damage and some of the time not by her own error). And yes your comment is correct too, she has been dropped, scratched, grabbed roughly enough to bruise being a flyer. But the bottom line in cheerleading is, practice enough and know when something isn't working to stop and rethink the situation....we learned that the hard way!!! I also agree that this guy is a little inexperienced with cheerleading in it's current form today. It is a sport, it is a challenge and like any sport that offers challenge....there is risk of injury.
Linda 8-13-2008 @ 9:57AM
Meghan, my daughter ended up with a few fat lips and bruises as well, but I was talking catastrophic injury. If they have coaches who know what they are doing and not just someone off the street, yes accidents can occur, but normally not the catastrophic injuries. Many people don't understand the strength and endurance it takes to be a cheerleader. It is definitely a sport that requires tons of practice and hard work. My daughter started practice the day after school was out for the summer and continued practicing every day through the summer, excluding weekends, to the end of basketball season of the next year in school. I can't see myself forcing my child to be a cheerleader if that wasn't what she wanted to do, but she did it for 4 years in high school and 2 years in college. It requires dedication, discipline and a lot of work! She loved it and misses it still. You can end up with bruises in any sport, even a noncontact sport like swimming if you bump into a wall. :)