Tips for to reduce injuries in fall sports

CINCINNATI - With fall sports just around the corner, the experts weigh in to help prevent your child from injuring themselves this season.

More than 775,000 young adults 14 and under are treated in the emergency room for sports-related injuries each year, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics.

Here’s some advice from Dr. Teri McCambridge, clinical director of Sports Medicine at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, to help keep your student athlete healthy and injury-free this fall.

• Acclimate children to hot weather workouts by gradually.
• Make sure children drink plenty of fluids and take breaks every 10 to 15 minutes while participating in sports or physical activity.
• Young athletes with asthma should use preventative inhalers 20-30 minutes before exercise.
• Remind children to immediately tell the coach or trainer if they feel dizzy, “foggy,” have a lapse in memory, or have a headache after taking a blow to the head.
• Parents need to be mindful that athletes who have symptoms affecting their thought process after taking a blow to the head should not return to the same practice, game or contest and should be evaluated by a physician prior to return to play.