Mark Hyman's Blog, page 10

New York Times weighs in on overuse injuries

Jane Brody wrote about overuse injuries in youth sports in Tuesday's "Personal Health" column in the New York Times. The headline: For Children in Sports, a Breaking Point. I was glad to see it for a couple of reasons.

First, it brought attention to an issue that doesn't get very much - or as much as it deserves. Despite forums like this one and the efforts of many sports medicine experts, overuse injuries (totally avoidable if a few basics rules are observed) remain an under-reported issue. A...

We're the worst behaved sports parents on Earth!

We're Number One! We're Number One!

It's official. A recent survey of sports parents worldwide concludes that the worst behaved adults on Earth are...us.

Reuters/Ipsos polled 23,000 adults in 22 countries for observations about parental behavior. Its findings: "People living in the United States (60 percent) were most likely to witness unsavory behavior by a parent followed closely by residents of India (59 percent), Italy (55 percent), Argentina (54 percent), Canada (53 percent) and Australia ...

The Heart Association names its price - $1.5 million

Oatmeal is good. Tofu is healthy. But if you're looking to do your heart a real favor, buy a Nintendo Wii.

The American Heart Association seems to be saying that. This week, it announced it has joined forces with Nintendo. It is endorsing Wii (even Wii bowling?) as legitimate exercise. Its logo will be displayed on Wii boxes.

The heart association gets $1.5 million over three years from Nintendo. It make you wonder about a lot of things including this: Shouldn't the reputation of an iconic well...

A softball coach, eight strikeouts and a shoe

News item:

"A California high school girl's softball coach has apologized for requiring eight players who struck out during a recent game to drink soda pop out of a team member's shoes, a school district official said." (third item).

Questions I'd like to ask the coach:

When the first player took a sip, did it still seem like a good idea?

What happened to making players run laps around the field?

Other questions come to mind? Post them here.

This post originally...

A first for a New York Little League - Sandlot Day

A final nod to Sandlot Day.

I was searching for a league planning to hold one when I stumbled on a league that already had. The Philipstown, N.Y. Little League staged its Sandlot Day on May 2.

I spoke with the league president, Eddie Berry. He told me the kids had a blast. About 60 showed up out of 310 in the league.

A few nice touches. Kids were encouraged to use wood bats, provided by the league. A coach brought a snow-cone machine. Most of the players wore shorts and sneakers. Uniforms were n...

A first for Philipstown's Little League - Sandlot Day

A final nod to Sandlot Day.

I was searching for a league planning to hold one when I stumbled on a league that already had. The Philipstown, N.Y. Little League staged its Sandlot Day on May 2.

I spoke with the league president, Eddie Berry. He told me the kids had a blast. About 60 showed up out of 310 in the league.

A few nice touches. Kids were encouraged to use wood bats, provided by the league. A coach brought a snow-cone machine. Most of the players wore shorts and sneakers. Uniforms were n...

Another view: UVA teams should "finish the race"

Today, a response to Tuesday's post from Tim Holley, athletic director at the Gilman School in Baltimore. Tim and I agree on most things in the realm of kids and sports. We disagree about the Virginia lacrosse situation. Tim makes a thoughtful case that the seasons should go on, partly in tribute of Yeardley Love, partly to aid in the healing of UVA athletes.

From Tim:

I think that while the tragedy is about as devastating as things could get for a school program, there is some merit in moving ...

A violent death fails to stop a lacrosse season

The apparent murder of University of Virginia lacrosse player Yeardley Love is what people where I live are talking about because Yeardley was from Baltimore. My heart goes out to the victim's family, the accused's family, Yeardley's roommate who discovered her dead.

I surfed over to the US Lacrosse Web site for the lacrosse news angle. Sure enough, there was one. Reportedly, both the UVA men's and women's lacrosse teams plan to continue playing despite losing teammates (one in jail, one to be...

Will youth leagues sign up for Sandlot Day?

A few weeks ago, I wrote an article for the New York Times about a concept called Sandlot Day.

It's a new idea - sort of. Developed by the SUNY Youth Sports Institute at Cortland, the grand plan is for youth leagues to designate one day during their seasons when adults cede control to the kid players. They make decisions about the important stuff - who plays on which team, lineups, batting orders, whether stealing is allowed, if three strikes really means you're out. (Or get back in there and ...

Wedding bells for Olympic gymnast, Kerri Strug

Former gold medal gymnast Kerri Strug just got married. Nice story in Sunday's New York Times.

She's 32 and a project manager for the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention in Washington. Her new husband, Robert William Fischer III, is a lawyer in the Washington Congressional office of Representative Lamar Smith, a Republican from Texas.

The couple met two years ago through a mutual friend.

The article tells of the couple's courtship. It also touches on the tough choices - uneven...