Viva Vitality: Sport safety

By Andrea Klassen on April 26, 2019.

As the weather warms up, recreational sports for children and youth are in full swing. Equipment and helmet safety is just as important as getting properly trained to play all the fun sports that spring and summer months bring. To minimize the risk of sports and recreation-related injuries here are a few things that can be done to stay safe (Injury Prevention Centre, 2019):

* Wear safety gear.

* Warm up. This helps prepare your body for physical activity. Cool down. This helps the body recover.

* Get trained.

* Play fair.

* Check your environment.

* Get qualified coaching staff.

* Pace yourself.

* Take care of injuries. Return to activity only after your injury has fully healed. This includes concussions.

* Drink lots of fluids (such as water) before, during and after your activity.

Many sports have a variety of safety equipment and helmets that are required or recommended for use when participating in the sport. Choosing the correct equipment or helmet for each sport is imperative to preventing injury while playing the sport.

Here are a few examples of equipment that is required to play (Parachute Canada, 2019):

Baseball: Wear a proper baseball helmet when batting, base running, catching and umpiring. Face shields should be worn when batting in hardball to protect the face, eyes, head and neck.

Soccer: Shin guards should be worn at all times and should have sufficient shock-absorption capacity and cover a large area of the lower leg. Mouth guards should also be worn to protect from injuries to the mouth and teeth. Molded cleats should also be worn to increase traction when playing on the field.

Football: Ensure a properly fitted football helmet is worn at all times. Shoulder and neck padding, gloves, thigh and knee pads, cleats and mouth guards should also be worn to prevent serious injury while playing and tackling.

Cycling: Wear a proper bike helmet and make sure that it is fit properly to reduce the risk of serious head injury. Follow the 2-V-1 rule when fitting and checking your helmet. This means there should be two fingers above your eyebrow, straps should form a “V” under your ears and there should be one finger space between the strap and the chin. Also, ensure that you are wearing bright, reflective clothing and your bike should have flashing light, reflectors and a bell to ensure you are seen and heard.

In-line skating: Wearing protective gear at all times will ensure that you stay safe while skating around town or playing hockey. Helmets, wrist guards, elbow pads and knee pads should all be properly fit and worn. Ensure the skates fit properly for your child’s size and ability.

These are just a few of the tips to ensure that your child has a fun, injury-free sports season this spring and summer.

Andrea Klassen is a Health Promotion Facilitator with Alberta Health Services, and can be reached by email at andrea.klassen@ahs.ca