Boxing and kids' heads
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From the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, I'm Ira Dreyfuss with HHS HealthBeat.
A researcher who looked at emergency department data concludes that boxing and young people is a bad combination. Dr. Gary Smith of Nationwide Children's Hospital in Columbus, Ohio:
``We found that, over the 19-year study period, there was a significant increase in the number of boxing injuries.'' (6 seconds)
In 2008, there were nearly 2,500 injuries to young people ages 6 to 17. Over the 19 years, for all age groups, almost a quarter were head and neck injuries. Smith says young boxers experienced the same proportion of concussions as older ones, and he says that's worrisome. He says boxers aim for the head, and repeated concussions can be dangerous.
The study in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine was supported by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Learn more at hhs.gov.
HHS HealthBeat is a production of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. I'm Ira Dreyfuss.