It is unfair to deny or limit participation for larger than normal kids in the name of safety, because there is no existing scientific evidence that “unlimited” classes are riskier than “weighted” classes. Scientific studies actually suggest the exact opposite.

*Note: Please keep in mind while reading this that I am not, indeed, a disgruntled parent whose child is too heavy to play in his own age group. I am the mother of a child who is in the lower division of weight(17th percentile for his age), and I am asking you to allow the larger players to play with my child, without fear that he will be at a greater risk for injury because scientific studies indicate that any child who is moved out of a group into an older group is at ten times the risk for an injury than my child when playing with larger children on the field. Therefore, I am asking you to make this change to protect all of the children on the football fields in Blount county, not just my own.

It is best to look to scientific studies on this topic to determine if weight limits cause a positive or negative effect on our youth and community. I have researched and gathered some of these sources and facts, and will share them.

First, There is a compelling scientific studies by the Mayo Clinic that is dead on point for answering these questions. As you are probably aware, the Mayo clinic has a stellar reputation in the medical community. The 1997 Mayo Clinic study of a large youth football league was based on 915 players ages 9 to 13 in grades 4 through 8. All of the teams were grouped by grade. There was also a very similar study completed in 2002 that had virtually the same findings. Weight categories were not used. The critical findings were as follows:
**An "Injury" was defined as follows: "Any football-related ailment that occurred on the field during a game that kept a player out of competition for the remainder of the game, required the attention of a physician, and included all concussions, lacerations, as well as dental, eye, and nerve injury"**

A total of 55 injuries occurred during games for the entire season for an incident rate of 5.97%
Most injuries were minor with most being bruise/contusions which accounted for 60% of total injuries. 7% of total injuries were bad enough to prevent the player from participating for the rest of the season. These were all ankle fractures.
The risk of injury for an 8th grader was four times the risk of injury for a 4th grader. Therefore, the number one risk factor for injury is age. The higher the age, the higher the chance of injury and as a result, correct age groupings are critical to limiting injuries.
To the surprise of many, heavier players sustained more injuries than light players. Therefore, specific weight groupings would not appear to protect lighter players.

Youth players who are larger don’t necessarily impact with more force if they aren’t fast and strong. The number one determining factor of speed and strength is age maturity and not weight.

Second, It is important to also acknowledge that neither 6th/7th grade middle school, JV, high school, college, nor pros find it necessary to divide by weight classes. If 6th/7th grade middle school and 8th/9th grade JV teams are not required to have weight categories for safety purposes, why should they be forced on the same age groups in non-scholastic youth football?

There are other reasons why unlimited classes are superior to weighted classes:

We are in the middle of an obesity epidemic, and too many kids who are overweight may have to sit out and not get much needed exercise resulting in health problems down the road. It is fact that the effects of youth obesity are indeed Immediate and lead to long-term health effects. Obese children are more likely to have risk factors for diabetes, cardiovascular disease. They are also more likely to develop prediabetes, bone and joint problems, sleep apnea, and social and psychological problems. Am I saying that we could indeed eliminate the problem of youth obesity by allowing larger children the opportunity to play and exercise? No, what I am going to say is that I feel that if we can help 1 child combat childhood obesity through youth sports, we are accomplishing a more positive effect than if we force them to sit out, lose much needed exercise and, and subject them to emotional and psychological damage.

Specific weight categories often force youth to attempt to drop weight in order to make the weight category, to be part of the team, and to fit in with his friends, and the result can be very unhealthy and even dangerous! One popular technique for dropping weight involves limiting the intake of fluids, to drop "water weight" that can lead up to a 5 lb difference in a matter of days. This can lead to dehydration which is the number one cause of heat illness, which can result in DEATH! Instead I feel like we should allow these children to have the opportunity to play and get the exercise and keep information on hand and available for the parents on healthy diets and lifestyles.

By not allowing them to play we are excluding them: Telling them, and the other children their age that can play because they are inside weight, they do not belong. With the obvious problem of bullying that is rising yearly, we as the adults and the organization are encouraging children to not accept other children based on things such as weight. The emotional impact of not feeling accepted can be damaging, and irreparable. These children feel as if they are an outcast, and can cause major problems to society.

A few examples of "social outcasts" in American society: Timothy McVeigh, a home land terrorist, responsible for the single largest terrorist attack on United States soil, by an American Citizen, a CHILDHOOD SOCIAL OUTCAST. Granted, maybe his name doesn't ring you the way it does me, as I lost a family member who laid dead underneath the rubble of the Oklahoma City Bombing for 5 days while they searched for bodies. She was only 1 of the 168 lives America lost on April 19, 1995. Why? Because we as Americans are in the practice of creating social outcasts. A couple other names of "monsters" who came from being the childhood outcast : Ted Kaczynski, Eric Rudolph, Charles Manson. Or how about the nameless 4,400 people who take their lives each year due to bullying and not being accepted. FACT: Children 10-14 years old are at the highest risk for suicide today. ALSO FACT: approximately 160,000 children stay home from school every day because they are afraid of being bullied or do not feel like they fit in. We have the power to create acceptance among these young children, instead we are creating seclusion and setting a child up for potential emotional failure, greater health risks, and also putting them at higher risk of injury if they are moved into higher age levels strictly based one weight.
Fact: Weight categories that allow younger / heavier players to move up to an older age group can place the younger heavier athlete at increased risk of injury since the primary injury factors are age related based on speed and strength.
Also fact: Weight categories that allow older / lighter to move down to a younger age group can place the younger age group participants at a greater risk due to the greater age related speed and strength of the older player.
It is obvious that changing age groups because of weight is creating a huge risk, physically and emotionally.
Both American Youth Football and Pop Warner Football, the two largest youth football organizations in the US, offer unlimited weight classes. Therefore, a standard has been set for their acceptability.

I am asking that we as a community follow this standard and eliminate weight classes in youth football in Blount County.

Thank you ahead of time for considering this request,