Should you encourage your son to play football? There are many benefits for boys. Self esteem, self confidence, body building, leadership, being a team player, potential college scholarships and most importantly to the boys, admiration from the girls. But the costs too, can be high. High for your child and high for you as a parent. Football has a higher risk of injury than any other sport. For preteens the dangers from such a contact sport are especially great. Their young bones have not fully grown and developed. They are at a high risk for what can be serious even fatal injuries. According to a recent survey of high school sports injuries, football had by far the most with about 600,000 out of 2,000,000 games and practices.

I am the mother of two married sons, both sons are strong and tall, over 6ft. The temptation to participate was there. We had given them full rein to participate in all sports from the time they were toddlers. They tried many of them: swimming, tennis, baseball, soccer, golf and others. They earned many trophies. There was peer pressure to try football. This is where my husband and I drew a line in the sand. We convinced them the rewards were not worth the risk. In college, they excelled in sports and did not miss football at all. Now, as husbands and fathers, they love to watch football but have no regrets.