In the end, it all comes back to education: In the ideal world, a parent's decision about whether to allow a child to start playing or continue playing collision
sports before high school under current rules of play (which are evolving in the direction of
safety, fortunately, as seen, for instance, in USA Hockey's ban on body checking at the Pee Wee hockey level and below, and limits on full - contact practices instituted at every level of football, from Pop Warner, to high school, college, and the NFL), will be a conscious one; a decision in which the risks of participating in a particular
sport - provided it is based on the most up - to - date information about those risks and a consideration of other risk
factors that might come into play for their child, such as pre-existing learning disabilities (e.g. ADHD), chronic health conditions (e.g., a history of history of multiple concussions or seizures, history of migraines), or a reckless and overly aggressive style of play - are balanced against the benefits to the child of participating.