Boxing concerns

(Editor’s note: In the article “Punching Like a Girl-Empowering Young Women through Boxing,” Feb. 17 edition of the Journal, we neglected to note that the girls do not make contact with one another. The class is a workout that involves contact with the air or punching bags.)

Thousands of boys and girls younger than 19 years participate in boxing in North America. Although boxing provides benefits for participants, including exercise, self-discipline, and self-confidence, the sport of boxing encourages and rewards deliberate blows to the head and face. Participants in boxing are at risk of head, face, and neck injuries, including chronic and even fatal neurologic injuries. Concussions are one of the most common injuries that occur with boxing. Because of the risk of head and facial injuries, the American Academy of Pediatrics and the Canadian Pediatric Society oppose boxing as a sport for children and adolescents. These organizations recommend that physicians vigorously oppose boxing in youth and encourage patients to participate in alternative sports in which intentional head blows are not central to the sport.  The American Academy of Pediatrics and the Canadian Pediatric Society recommend that pediatricians:

1. Vigorously oppose boxing for any child or adolescent.

2. Educate patients who may be engaged in or considering engaging in boxing, as well as parents/caregivers/teachers/coaches, regarding the medical risks of boxing.

3. Encourage young athletes to participate in alternative sports in which intentional blows to the head are not central to the sport, such as swimming, tennis, basketball, and volleyball.

4. Advocate that boxing organizations ensure that appropriate medical care is provided for children and adolescents who choose to participate in boxing, ideally including medical coverage at events, preparticipation medical examinations, and regular neurocognitive testing and ophthalmologic examinations.

In addition to the above-named national medical organizations, the following bodies have taken an identical stand: American Medical Association: Recommends that until boxing is banned, head blows should be prohibited Australian Medical Association: Opposes all forms of boxing; recommends the prohibition of all forms of boxing for people younger than 18. British Medical Association: Opposes amateur and professional boxing; calls for complete ban on boxing; recommends banning boxing for those younger than 16. Canadian Medical Association: Recommends that all boxing be banned in Canada. World Medical Association: Recommends that boxing be banned.Finally, these issues apply most acutely to girls and women as their risk for concussive head injury with persistent effects is significantly higher than males. As one who has worked aggressively to both assess and reduce risk of head injury in our kids, I absolutely support the wisdom of all of the above recommendations.

Mark Fishaut

Friday Harbor