Mental Health Benefits Of Watching Sports

Improved Essays
Sports have played an active role throughout many generations and provide a healthy escape among many children and adults. Being involved with sports as an athlete or sports fan, have positive physical and mental benefits that translate into a healthier life. Therefore, we should all either participate or watch sports. While the physical benefits are much more obvious then the mental benefits, it takes doctors, neurologists, and athletes themselves, to provide a clear understanding on just how important sports are in improving our mental benefits. Over time, many athletes lose interest in their sport, or do not possess the necessary abilities to play at the next level, but still stay engaged through watching television games, or watch friends and family play sports. Daniel Wann of Murray State University has researched the effects of …show more content…
Watching sports is linked to higher levels of well-being and general happiness with

Related Documents

  • Improved Essays

    Bill Simmons Essay

    • 588 Words
    • 3 Pages

    In Bill Simmons’ recent article entitled LeBron is Still Painting his Masterpiece, Simmons argues that LeBron James’ legacy is far from its inevitable twilight. He compares James’ past and present obstacles to those of other legendary athletes, such as Michael Jordan. Simmons, using a plethora of writing structures and styles, also discusses the historical ups-and-downs of the National Basketball Association. The article uses several anecdotes and facts to both humor the reader and support the author's thesis stated in the title. Why the hell does our society care so damn much about sports?…

    • 588 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The sport of football plays a complex role in the lives of its players; its pros and cons have caused a debate of whether or not adolescents should continue to participate in the sport. Participation in any sport involves the risk of injury, but football seems to be an exception. Many believe that football is an overly-aggressive sport that endangers the players' health. Others argue that the sport's benefits outweigh the risks, helping players build stamina, social skills, and character; however, they do not fail to recognize the fact that the sport of football is quite risky. High school students should not be allowed to play football, because its players could suffer from injuries to their physical, mental, and emotional health that could can could cause long term health complications.…

    • 621 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    “Causes and Consequences of Sports…

    • 365 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Thesis statement: Sports related concussions have long-term cognitive effects. Sports are a big part of life from playing as a kid to making it in the big deals and if not then watching the professionals. Long-term cognitive effects can create a different lifestyle later in life. People get caught up in the hype of the sport at the present time and do not stop and think how this can effect their life long-term. Individuals have researched the relationship between a variety of high-impact sports players who have encountered repeated head injuries and the long-term cognitive effects.…

    • 386 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Over the past two centuries sports have emerged into a hobby that a majority of the population takes part in. As the love for sports continues to grow the competition seems to be increasing as well. The expectation for athletes to perform at their very best, by either themselves, their parents or coaches, is extremely high. Along with high expectations comes much controversy over the fact that adolescent sports can cause mental health issues. There is evidence proven that over time the mental heath issues in adolescent athletes have increased since the beginning of sports.…

    • 836 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Should kids be involved in Competitive Sports? This has been a topic surfing the media, and being discussed by parents all over. There have been stories of NFL players showing signs of alzheimer's at the age of 40. But, on the other hand, there have also been stories of young children finding Competitive Sports to be beneficial. This paper will argue that Competitive Sports are beneficial because they promote physical and mental health.…

    • 658 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Football Mental Health

    • 991 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Football is also a positive aspect when it comes to helping physical health. Lastly even though the article discusses the negatives it has on mental health, football can also play a key role in enhancing individuals' mental health. For a few people including myself, physical movement can be as intense as drug or treatment and playing the sport can have a positive affect on the way someone feels in the present and in the future. Making friends, staying in shape, remaining healthy, all of these are for the most part ordinary parts of everyday life. However, the shame that encompasses mental disease makes these things harder for individuals who have mental health issues.…

    • 991 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Football is one of the main leaders in helping young kids stay in the proper weight class and making sure that they are not overweight. Also, as well as a physical workout, football is a mental workout. According to health and fitness.com, Football helps release a very healthy amount of endorphins which make your moods more stable. It is also proven to lift dark moods since you are working together as a team. Clearly, football really helps you stay healthy.…

    • 772 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Thus, the analysis within the observations of sport specialization shows that burnout, or emotional exhaustion from the psychological demands of the sport, can affect one’s mental stability. Jessica Hess, a head athletic trainer similarly emphasizes, “Studies have shown that sport dropout rate is substantially higher in young athletes who specialize at an early age (prior to 15-years-old)” (Hess). The younger the age the child is specializing in one single sport the more time they have to contemplate and realize the pain within the over training. The more work that they have to put into the training the less motivation he or she will have to complete their accomplishments.…

    • 1134 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    In addition, it may make American’s viewpoints on the sports change. “Americans of all economic classes and backgrounds have always been able to escape life’s troubles by watching sports,” the second article by Merrill Matthews informed. If there are professional athletes taking the focus away from the game, their job, to politics and other struggles, they aren’t doing their job or continuing the reason of the pastime, to distract and entertain viewers. If they aren’t doing their job, people will then stop watching the sport or team. Furthermore,…

    • 463 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Organized Sports Essay

    • 812 Words
    • 4 Pages

    For parents, putting their children into organized sports may be an easy decision to make. For other parents, that decision may be more difficult. This decision occurs around the time a child reaches elementary school and starts to participate in physical education classes or a after school sports program (Coté 6). The effects of organized sports in early childhood development can have lasting impacts on a child’s metal, physical, and social health. Active participation in organized sports, as a child, can have lasting mental benefits.…

    • 812 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    A number of factors contribute to the mental health of athletes including the effects of stress, internal and external pressures, bullying and sexual abuse, and injuries. If not treated, over time mental illnesses can get worse. It is important for the stigma around mental illnesses to diminish so that athletes feel as if it is okay for them to seek help for any problems. Universities should also hire sports psychologists to work with athletes to educate, prevent, and treat mental illnesses. Student athletes maintaining good mental health is just as important as their study skills, training regime, nutrition when it comes to performing well on the field as well as in the…

    • 1921 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Sports may do more than enhance physical strength, but it may stimulate the brain as well. A study done by researchers at the Beckman Institute for Advanced Science at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign compared, not the physical but rather, the cognitive ability of athletes to nonathletes. The article, How Sports May Focus the Brain, published in the New York Times recorded their…

    • 567 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Donna L. Merkel discusses in her article, “Youth sport: positive and negative impact on young athletes,” both the positives and negatives of sports. She presents in a table how sports provide more physical activity, better motor skills, and an obesity risk decrease, as well as positive character development, increase mental health, and better social skill. Though she also includes how sports can cause injuries, unrealistic expectations, and stress, while also causing imbalance between different groups. (157) Injuries by far are one of the biggest down problems from the athlete’s perspective. The high amount of injuries in sports start to tear down athletes body and make them more susceptible to re-injuries and even when healed, the injury will still cause the body to be weaker.…

    • 1602 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Children and teens of today's society are getting less exercise and physical activity than ever before. The solution to this epidemic is joining competitive sports, they are not just good for the child’s health they are also good for various other things. Of course, there are risks involved in competitive sports such as getting injured and sometimes seriously injured and competitive sports may get heated and can become all about the winning but they need to take the risk in order to see the many benefits competitive sports have. Competitive sports numerous benefits but here are a few, competitive sports have social benefits.…

    • 1876 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Improved Essays