In society today we are often told , via the media, about the sorry state of overweight and inactive children. However , at the other end of the spectrum, are those children for whom life revolves around sporting activity. There has been a sharp increase over the last decade in children suffering from overuse injuries and it is important that we are aware of the impact that too much sport has on a growing body.
An overuse injury is defined as " micro-trauma damage to bone, muscle or tendon that has been subjected to repetitive stress without time to heal or undergo natural repair". This type of injury exists in four stages :
- * Pain in affected area after activity
- * Pain during activity without restriction
- * Pain during activity with restriction
- * Chronic, unremitting pain even at rest
The risk of overuse injuries are more considerable in an adolescent than in a younger child as the growing skeleton cannot handle as much stress.
Studies by the American College of Sports Medicine indicate that overuse injuries are four times more prevalent than five years ago. Experts attribute this increase to the fact that more young people are specialising in one sport at an earlier age. In the past sports were more seasonal; this meant that a child who played a variety of sports, throughout the year, used joints and muscle in a different way. Training the same muscles all year -round is believed to be the main cause of the rise in overuse injuries in young people; when you stress the same body part over and over again, there is always a risk of injury.
No child should participate in the same sporting activity more than five days a week and they should have, at least , one day off from all activities. They should also have a two to three month period each year when they have a break from each sport.
Children should exercise regularly and participating in sport is essential for flexibility, strenght and stamina. However, we must ensure that we protect young bodies as they develope so that sport can be a life-long activity.