Fall sports are right around the corner, and a local doctor is sharing advice to help prevent injuries in young athletes.
Dr. Eric Maher is a Primary Sports Medicine Physician for Dignity Health. He says that around this time of year, he sees an increase in kids coming in with sports-related injuries.
"I would really say overuse, especially in the young athletes, is the biggest thing, where they are eager to start playing," Dr. Maher said.
He says the symptoms are pretty similar.
"Kids are still growing, the bones are getting longer, [they're] playing a lot of the sport, they're kind of pushing themselves, not really hard but that constant pulling on the muscle can cause irritation. Parents will start to notice... they'll start saying, you know, they're having pain at dinner time and the next day, but unlike growing pains, it's isolated to one site," Maher said.
Injuries can happen with any sport, but Dr. Maher says there are several things you can do to reduce the risk.
"Prioritize sleep and then making sure that there is still good nutrition coming in," Maher said.
He adds that taking breaks is key.
"It's a good idea to have one to two days of rest... And that's not just, let's be couch potatoes and watch Netflix," Maher said. "It is okay, you know, just go free play out there, try a different sport. You know, if you're doing an upper body sport, why don't we play soccer this weekend and vice versa."
One mom who was watching her young soccer player at Meadow Park in San Luis Obispo on Friday said playing a variety of sports has worked well for her children.
"They're either swimming or biking or playing catch or jogging so that they're developing physically with a lot of different activities but nothing so intensively that's pushing them towards an injury in any direction," said Mindy Wilkinson, a mom of three.
Craig Holyhead is coaching soccer in San Luis Obispo for the summer and says safety is always on his mind.
"These guys are here Monday to Friday for about three to four hours," Holyhead said, "but we try to give them a lot of breaks, every few days to keep them healthy, let muscles recover."
Dr. Maher says that while injuries can happen no matter how proactive you are, he recommends bringing youth athletes in once a year for a pre-participation physical with their doctor.
He says that one of the most important things to remember is for the athletes to enjoy the sport they're playing.
