Why Kids Should Play Sports

Sports can teach young athletes to control emotions and show initiative, two traits which transfer to other areas of life: school, family and eventually a job.

As if there weren’t already many good reasons for kids to play sports, I’ve just found some more. A report put out by TrueSport.org claims that in addition to the physical benefits, sports provide emotional, psychological and social benefits.

Here are some highlights from that report:

•   Research shows that physical activity slows the development of chronic diseases and conditions, such as heart disease, hypertension, type 2 diabetes, obesity and osteoporosis because sport participation strengthens the heart, muscles and bones and lessens stress.

•   Childhood and youth obesity has doubled over the past 25 years and affects one-third of all children by third grade.