A Look At Sports Protective Wear

By Lila Barry


With more and more people being active in sports these days, safety is becoming a bigger issue than ever before. There are several ways to help ensure the safety of those who participate, including specific rules designed to protect their well-being and proper care and maintenance of equipment and facilities. One area that has seen tremendous improvement in this regard is in the design, production and use of sports protective wear.

A wide variety of this type of gear is available, varying according to which sport is being played and the particular needs of the user. Certain sports have rules requiring the use of specific types of protective wear because of the intrinsic dangers involved. There are also additional options for those with special needs or conditions.

American football is perhaps the easiest example to visualize. The players in this game will be seen wearing large shoulder pads, a helmet with a face mask and mouth guards at a minimum. Most often they will also use pads for the thighs, knees, hips and tailbone.

Ice hockey is another game in which the players are padded nearly from head to toe. It's also an illustration of the increased role of protective padding. Years ago hockey players didn't wear head or face protection. Even goalies used to wear nothing on their heads despite using their bodies to block a puck hurtling toward the net at incredibly high speeds. Nowadays, hockey players are much better protected, including high-tech goalie masks and helmets.

Probably the most commonly-seen variety of safety wear is the helmet. These are used in a wide variety of sports due to the importance of protecting the head in general and the brain specifically. The two games mentioned above use these as do others including auto racing, horse riding, cycling, baseball, snowboarding and skiing.

Such examples are quite obvious but this isn't always the case. For instance, rash guards are often worn in surfing to protect the skin from both the sun and from excessive friction caused by rubbing against the board. The leash, which is worn on one leg and attaches to the board, can be viewed in this way too. The leash keeps the board from flying away and putting other surfers in danger of being hit by it.

In cases where one has already suffered an injury, extra equipment may be used. This can be the case when one is returning from an acute injury, such as wearing a brace or using tape on an ankle that was recently sprained. It is also common in instances where one has chronic problems, such at taping or using a brace on an ankle that is currently healthy but tends to suffer from sprains.

Every sport has its inherent dangers and injury risk. Anyone who chooses to participate should consider taking measures to ensure their safety. Using sports protective wear is an easy and effective method of doing just this.




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