Cheerleading Risks on the Rise

Posted on | October 13, 2008 | Comments Off on Cheerleading Risks on the Rise

What parents should be aware of this fallOrganized sports play center stage in the lives of many teens. And for many parents, that means dealing with bumps and bruises – but also worrying about the possibility of a rare catastrophic event. When you think of women and sports injuries, where do you think most of the danger is? If you said gymnastics, you’re wrong. It turns out that cheerleading is the most dangerous of youth athletic activities.

A recent study by the National Center for Catastrophic Sports Injury Research at the University of North Carolina catalogued 103 fatal, disabling and serious injuries in U.S. high school and college women between 1982 and 2007 and found that two thirds of them were associated with cheerleading. Experts say a major reason for this increase has been the introduction of gymnastic-type stunts. Without good coaching and instruction, these moves can lead to catastrophic injury. And figures show that cheerleaders suffer a much greater incidence of these kinds of injuries than their peers in other sports.

In spite of the risks, cheerleading couldn’t be more popular. Currently 95,200 female students and 2,150 males take part in high school cheerleading each year.

While the risks are under-recognized by most parents, the coaches are increasingly aware of the problem. In 1988, the American Association of Cheerleading Coaches and Administrators (AACCA) was formed, a non-profit educational association for the over 70,000 cheerleading coaches across the United States.

The AACCA offers a variety of safety tips, which you can learn more about by reading the full transcript of this program or watching the video embedded with this blog. In general, they strive to take out any unpredictability and put an emphasis on supervision and careful training.

If you’re the parent of a child whose dream is to make that cheerleading squad, I have three suggestions, in addition to the AACCA’s safety tips.

1. Visit a practice session or two before you give your final OK.

2. Speak to the coach and ask about his or her qualifications and safety procedures.

3. Continuously monitor performances, not just for artistry and success, but more importantly for safety.

As always, I’m interested in your response to this topic. Watch the video embedded with this blog post, and then post a comment. Should we be more restrictive about the cheerleading moves allowed?