High School, College Football Comes With Risk

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But better coaching might help. For instance, Comstock noted that most injuries occurred during tackles, and that the most injured positions were running backs and linebackers. "So, at the high school level, especially with younger players, coaches can make sure the athletes are very well-coached in the technique of tackling and are physically able to perform a tackle before they are allowed to play."

The CDC study showed that football is just one of many recreational activities in which young people can suffer serious harm. Poring over data from 2001-2005 from the National Electronic Injury Surveillance System--All Injury Program, the researchers looked at the causes of almost 208,000 nonfatal sports and recreation-linked brain injuries.

Kids aged 10 to 14 were at highest risk for these injuries, and males accounted for more than 70 percent of head trauma cases, the CDC report found. Activities linked to high rates of emergency department admissions for brain trauma included ATV use, use of mopeds/dirtbikes/minibikes, bicycling, golf and scooter use.

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So, sports and recreation can cause injury, the experts say, especially when safety equipment is lacking or safety rules are ignored. And yet Comstock also emphasized that parents should not use her team's study as an excuse to take their children out of football.

"We have an epidemic of obesity in this country, and sports is one of the best ways for kids to incorporate exercise in their lives," she said. "Parents can help keep kids safe by making sure they wear all the appropriate protective equipment, and that their protective equipment fits properly and is in good repair."

LaBella added that parents can also help their children by ensuring that they maintain good physical conditioning year-round, are properly coached in techniques such as tackling and falling, and -- perhaps most important -- that they tell someone, whether a parent, coach, or athletic trainer, if they are injured, especially in the head.

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