Concussions In Hockey

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Requiring helmets in the sport of girls’ lacrosse would change the dynamic by taking the emphasis off skill improvement and instead replacing a more physical game. News reports, YouTube videos and interviews have provided support as to why helmets should not be a requirement in the sport of girls’ lacrosse. In these sources, facts reported by the news, medical professionals and lacrosse experts have also shown as to why lacrosse helmets would hinder the sport rather then help it.
Concussions are fairly common in women’s lacrosse. In fact, women’s lacrosse obtains the third highest rate of concussions among women in sports. Lacrosse follows closely behind soccer and basketball mostly from collisions, falls, and accidental stick-to-head contact. …show more content…
This journal along side most do prove that concussions are a huge deal in present day athletics. Concussion rates have doubled since 2002 and the only thing being changed is helmet standards, regulations and design, which is not fixing the actual problem. This has parents worried for not only their children's present, but also their future. Concussions cannot truly be 100% prevented, so we need to find alternate methods to our solution. My brother, Paul Harrison, a D1 lacrosse player, received his concussion while wearing a helmet from stick to head contact. This proves that concussions cannot always be prevented by helmets. He, alongside the other three subjects I interviewed, all believe that helmets in girl’s lacrosse could help lower stick to head related concussions, but overall would not do much. If both men and women’s lacrosse players face head injuries, then there is not anything a helmet can fix. Along side this, football has the highest concussion rate, yet it has the most protective, innovative helmets. Helmets promote injury; they allow rough play where we could be taking other precautions to develop safer play. Many who play the game agree that helmets would become more of a nuisance than anything, and argue that girl’s lacrosse players should be taught more technique and skill that would help to prevent …show more content…
While, I agree that the NCAA has the power to make the sport safer, helmets are not the answer. This would bring girls in closer contact with one another as they would feel that they can hit and check harder, therefore promoting rough play. In the New York Times article, “A Case Against Helmets in Lacrosse,” Olivia Mann, a senior attacker at Columbia University said, “I would be more likely to take risky checks, which would change the nature of defense completely, now, trying not to foul her, it’s very much about where I get my hands and body. If she’s wearing a helmet, I don’t have to worry about physically injuring her. I’m more likely to sacrifice my body positioning to get at her stick” (qtd. in Schwarz). Although some safety advocates call for head protection in women’s lacrosse, almost everyone involved in the sport has said that its current ban on helmets for everyone but goaltenders is actually the safest approach. Many have already noticed a change in play since the requirement that all players wear eye goggles in 2005. Camille Richardson, another Columbia lacrosse player stated, “Wearing a helmet would just bring us closer to football and hockey” (qtd. in Schwarz). Hockey safety experts question if helmets foster more physical play, alongside this, football experts look back and wonder whether big face masks encouraged a recklessness that can lead to long-term brain damage. Doctor Katherine
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