La Porte Girls Softball Association: Safety
Each year, more than 125,000 baseball and softball players under age 15 are injured badly enough to seek treatment in hospital emergency departments. Hundreds of thousands of adults receive minor injuries in these sports. Many of the injuries can be prevented if players wear safety gear and if additional safety measures are added to the game.
Tips for Preventing Baseball and Softball Injuries
To help your child avoid injuries while playing baseball or softball, follow these safety tips from the American Academy of Pediatrics, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the Consumer Product Safety Commission, and other sports and health organizations. (Note: These tips apply to adult ball players, too.)
Before your child starts a training program or plays competitive baseball or softball, take him or her to the doctor for a physical exam. The doctor can help assess any special injury risks your child may have.
Make sure your child wears all the required safety gear every time he or she plays and practices. Insist that your child wear a helmet when batting, waiting to bat, or running the bases. Helmets should have eye protectors, either safety goggles or face guards. Shoes with molded cleats are recommended (most youth leagues prohibit the use of steel spikes). If your child is a catcher, he or she will need additional safety gear: catcher's mitt, face mask, throat guard, long-model chest protector, and shin guards.
If your child is a pitcher, Insist that your child warm up and stretch before playing.
Teach your child not to play through pain. If your child gets injured, see your doctor. Follow all the doctor's orders for recovery, and get the doctor's OK before your child returns to play.
Talk to and watch your child's coach. Coaches should enforce all the rules of the game, encourage safe play, and understand the special injury risks that young players face. Make sure your child's coach teaches players how to avoid injury when sliding (prohibits headfirst sliding in young players), pitching, or dodging a ball pitched directly at them.
Above all, keep baseball and softball fun. Putting too much focus on winning can make your child push too hard and risk injury.
Nutritional Guidelines
Nutritional Guidelines
In a nutshell, there are a few simple guidelines that you should always keep in mind when preparing for exercise:
1. For early morning games or practices, eat lightly at breakfast. You should load up on
carbohydrates the evening before. Following the game you should eat a snack to help
replenish lost energy.
2. For afternoon games or practices, eat a good breakfast that is high in carbohydrates
and low in fats and sugars. Depending on the time of your games you should eat a light
snack at least 1 hour before. If your game is in the late afternoon you may have time
for a light meal but be sure that you have atleast 2 hours before the game if you are
going to eat a meal.
3. For evening games or practices eat a normal breakfast and lunch that is high in
carbohydrates. Before the game eat a light snack and afterward eat a meal.
4. When eating to prepare for exercise, be sure to eat foods that are high in carbohydrates
and low in sugar and fat. This is especially important when preparing for tournaments.
5. Understand the importance of proper hydration before, during and after all practices
and games.
6. Completely avoid loading up on sugary junk foods and sodas before strenuous exercise
and during tournaments!
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SUMMER IS HERE!!
As you know the weather is getting warm and it is only going to get warmer! Do you know how to protect yourself? Heres some advice for you ..
Increase the amount of fluids (like water or juice) that you drink, even if you are not exercising more than you normally do. If you do exercise when it is hot outside, drink 2-4 glasses of cool water every hour!
Avoid very cold drinks which can cause stomach cramps.
Sweating takes salt and minerals away from the body. The best way to replace them is to drink fruit juice or sports drinks if you exercise. (People who are on a low-salt diet should talk to their doctor before drinking sports drinks which can be very salty.)
Choose lightweight, light-colored, loose-fitting clothing. When you go outside, wear a hat to keep sun off your face.
Wear sunscreen at all times. We all know that sunburn is painful, but it also affects the bodys ability to cool itself. Wearing sunscreen and staying out of the direct sun will also help prevent skin cancer. Choose a sunscreen that is waterproof (so it will not wash of with sweat) and one with a sun protection factor (SPF) of 15 or greater. Put sunscreen on at least 30 minutes before going out in the sun and reapply often throughout the day.
Keep in mind that the sun is hottest when it is highest in the sky (between 10am and 4pm). Avoid the sun in the middle of the day to prevent heat stroke and sunburn.
Symptoms of heat exhaustion include: heavy sweating, headache, dizziness, muscle cramps, fainting and nausea (feeling sick to your stomach). If you have any of these symptoms, STOP! Find a cool area, sit down and drink a glass of cool water. Try a cool shower or bath. Heat exhaustion can be dangerous.
With this in mind if you start to experience any of the symptoms of heat exhaustion let your parents or Coach know immediately!!
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