How Soccer Can Help Children - Essay Example

A B S T R A C T Soccer is a way of life for the Brazilians. They eat, drink, think and act soccer. Soccer is not just a sport but it has helped transform millions of life. It has brought about changes in the poverty level of the country and consequently changes lifestyles. Soccer leads to education not just the scholarly knowledge but education for life. Soccer teaches the youth to handle the conflicts amicably. Soccer in Brazil is also being encouraged to reduce obesity caused due to malnutrition . The contribution of former soccer players has a vital role in taking the street children away from the mundane activities of life. This paper examines how soccer can change lives of the people. “Soccer is more than just a sport. It’s a way to challenge your mind, body and soul and go beyond limits.” Charles Miller, an Englishman, brought Futebol (soccer in Portuguese), to Brazil in 1885 (Muller, 1998). Soccer is a ‘way of life’ for millions of Brazilians. The Brazilian soccer style reflects its culture and demonstrates its ‘foot ability’. The people here dance samba and use creativity and swing to promote various rhythms. It is very easy to play, has simple rules, does not require any equipment, and can be played on synthetic grass. The soccer ball can be made of socks, oranges or soda lids. People with various attributes can play soccer hence a large number of people can participate. Soccer was considered the only way to achieve economic success so rich people who play soccer become role models for others to follow. Despite the soccer being a part of the local culture, it was not initially used in schools. This paper will show how soccer should be used as a means of liberation, knowledge and development. It will examine how soccer should help children to have a better life, both physically and mentally. It will also show how associations maintained by former soccer players help children in Brazil by giving them a new direction in life. The accurate date of the sprouting of the game soccer is something that nobody can affirm with certainty. An action to kick some object always was present in the history of the humanity, either with a rock, a fruit and sometimes a skull. But the most likely story is this sport originated in China, around 2600 B.C. during the Han Dynasty, where Chinese military used to exercise by trying to kick a leather ball filled with hair on the inside of two poles fixed which were on the ground measuring 12 – 16 inches apart the "TsuChu". Soccer is one of the worlds most popular sports. People spend hours near their TV screens, watching their favorite players score. The profit from soccer is enormous, as millions of people all over the world are paying money for the tickets, posters, souvenirs and other small things for to remind them about the favorite player or team. The advertising agencies earn immense sums of money for selling time during the TV broadcasts, and for placing posters on the stadiums. Soccer is nowadays an industry, where great money is involved. People begin searching for something to entertain them only when they do not need to fight for their survival. In fact, the level of attention that is paid to the sports in Europe and U.S speaks about the high levels of life the dwellers of this regions have. Thus, it is no wonder that there is little football fans in Africa – it is hard to devote all of the attention to the forthcoming football match when people do not know what their children will have for breakfast tomorrow. The worlds most famous and prosperous players were born in Brazil, a country where soccer is a national sport, a well-paid occupation, and a profitable industry. The Brazilian club officials earn millions every year, while 50 million people live below the poverty line in this country. (The Man With the Plan, 2002). It has been estimated that about 30 million Brazilian children live in conditions that are subhuman and inadequate for their development. (Rupesinghe, Kumar, Rubio, 1994). Children there do not have time to play, to have fun, or to study, as they have to find food so as not to starve, and clothes so for not to get sick. Nevertheless, as the research shows the situation in Brazil is not the worst possible. Brazilian slums seem to be quite a decent place comparing to the Nigerians villages. "The U.N. humanitarian agency estimates some 800,000 children under 5 are suffering from hunger, including 150,000 faced with severe malnutrition." (Children in Niger starve as foreign aid trickles in, 2005). Malnutrition has been mankind’s most common health problems. Hunger was the main form of malnutrition but now a new form of malnutrition plagues the developed, obesity. Because of obesity, people are falling prey to chronic diseases like heart disease and diabetes. Hunger generally affects people with low income in developing countries while obesity afflicts people of all ages, gender, and any social status. The third form of malnutrition is vitamin deficiency. Hunger is usually found in developing nations, obesity in developed nations, while malnutrition is catching up in those nations which are in the transition stage from developing to developed nation, like Brazil. In Brazil 16% of the population is underweight while 36% is overweight (Hou, n.d.). Obesity in Brazil no more affects only the middle or upper class; it now plagues the poor and lower middle class as well. They are the biggest victims and they in turn cause serious environmental and economic problems. They are malnourished because their low income prevents them from having a healthy diet. Even if they have the capacity to buy food, they buy cheap food which contain more calories. Children are encouraged to eat more by their uneducated parents, who themselves are obese. While poverty and hunger may gradually be eradicating from Brazil malnutrition continues unabated. This is where soccer comes as a solution and remedy. The street children can be picked up and through the help of soccer given the right perspective in life. Soccer as mentioned earlier, is a way of life and the means to achieve a healthy lifestyle. “There are too many sedentary children today, as adults we know that there is a greater likelihood that obesity beginning even in early childhood will persist throughout the individual’s life,” said David Messersmith president US Youth Soccer.  “These kids need to be active and soccer is a great start!” (YSM, 2004). Sedentary lifestyles lead to obesity, which needs to be controlled. Soccer is a sport that demands trainings, concentration, resistance and, over all, a rigorous nutrition. A feeding adjusted in terms of amount and quality maximizes the desired effect, simultaneously improving the state of health of the player. A diet is not synonymous of victory, but it contributes for a healthy body and mind. Everyone should respect and obey this diet because this is vital for any athlete (Figueredo, 2005). Whether its training for a soccer game or playing a backyard game of catch, childrens athletic performance, development, and growth depend largely on eating the right foods (Steen, 1997). Children are not miniature adults but they have special nutritional needs, she stresses. The most appropriate diet for a youth athlete should be high in nutrient-dense complex carbohydrates, contain moderate amounts of protein, salt, sugars, and sodium, be low in fat, and provide sufficient calories. If this is followed, no nutritional supplements are necessary and they should not be allowed to skip meals. The parents need to be educated so as not to allow over indulgence in fruit juices and milk (About, 2006). While both are essential but the calorie intake has to be regulated. Meal portions should be small and frequent fast foods should be avoided. Parents usually insist that children clean their plates. Instead, the children should be encouraged to stop eating as soon as they are full. Children eat while watching their favorite television programs and get carried away. They should be made to eat consciously and within limits. Most important of all, the parents should be role models themselves by eating a healthy diet and not being obese themselves. A healthy diet is usually low in saturated fat ( Read More