Concussions have been a front-and-center issue in sports for a few years, but generally the conversation has been focused on professional football. Wholesale Vikings JerseysA . However, the injury is just as likely to affect female athletes, even in noncontact sports.Joanne Gerstner, a sports journalist in-residence at Michigan States College of Communication Arts and Sciences, alongside sports neurologist Jeffrey S. Kutcher, has written a book that examines the breadth of the concussion problem and gives practical advice for youth athletes and their parents.We asked Gerstner about the book Back in the Game: Why Concussion Doesnt Have to End Your Athletic Career.Note: Gerstner is a former editor for espnW.espnW: What was your goal with the book?Joanne Gerstner: Were trying to move people from fear of concussions [and] not acknowledging concussions to a more sophisticated conversation where we acknowledge the risk, but also the benefit of sport and look at the best ways for all of us to proceed safely and have fun.espnW: How do you frame the concussion issue in terms of women and girls?JG: Im really learning that the discussion about concussion in the general publics mind is a very male-dominated thing. They hear concussions being talked about in terms of football or hockey or boxing. But now, being out talking to people, Im hearing, Oh my gosh I didnt realize could get concussions like guys can.At first I was like, Hmm, we all have brains, we can get concussions. But people dont watch womens sports like they watch mens sports. The lawsuits have been directed more at mens entities than womens entities. It stands to reason they would associate concussions with a guys thing, but its really not.espnW: Dont girls and women get more concussions, statistically?JG: Physiologically were different from men, especially in terms of neck strength, especially during the teenage years. So if we are in a collision, say for soccer or basketball, our necks and our heads might jostle more than a guys would. A hormonal state, say the time of the month, can affect your susceptibility to concussions. And women tend to get more migraines than men.Add that all together and there are factors that show women might have a propensity to have concussions. It all comes down to, who are you, what sport are you playing and where is your body in all of this? Because we are all truly individuals and I try to shy away from general statements, but girls can get concussions during cheerleading, gymnastics, soccer, basketball -- so the risk is there and we need to be aware of it.espnW: How do we balance wanting our kids to develop independence and a spirit of adventure while still mitigating the risk of concussions?JG: I think you should be worrying about it as much as we worry about anything else with your child. Obviously you dont want your child falling out of a tree and breaking her arm. If shes playing lacrosse, you want to make sure she has proper equipment and good coaching and awareness.And its not just awareness, its that we are going to act on concussion. So if someone is suspected of being hurt, we take them out that we evaluate them. And if your daughter does get hurt, that she has the empowerment and the courage to say, Hey, I dont feel right, take me out? Or if she has a teammate she can say, Hey, Coach, my teammate doesnt seem right, can we take a look at her?Its about taking care of each other and not saying its a bump on the head or feeling obligated to play because Mom and Dad really want me to play. Its about moving away from fear of concussion to looking at it critically and being prepared for it.espnW: Did anything surprising pop up in the reporting for the book?JG: To me the most revelatory thing was talking to the parents about how nuanced a concussion is. I never knew people could have a concussion and not present with any symptoms because thats the way their body works.espnW: Cheerleading -- is that the sport where female athletes suffer the greatest number of injuries?JG: Its murky because a lot of states dont acknowledge cheer as a varsity sport. So getting numbers on cheerleading is challenging compared to basketball, where everyone acknowledges its a sport for both genders.Anecdotally the numbers for cheerleading are high. And just think about the stunting, where you throw a flier up five, 10 feet in the air, you do a flip, you come down. Arms, legs and heads can collide, so its not safe. Its really been fascinating to me -- some people are like, Oh, its cheerleading, how can they get hurt? Have you watched cheerleading lately? Its gymnastics mixed with high-level dance mixed with Cirque du Soleil. Absolutely they can get hurt.Ive talked to cheerleaders at the college level and the pressure on them to do bigger, badder tricks is there. Authentic Brian ONeill Jersey . Brett Kulak and Jackson Houck of the Vancouver Giants were each charged with assault causing bodily harm on Aug. 18, according to the B.C. court services. Authentic Daniel Carlson Jersey . The 18th player to shoot 60 on the tour, Jamieson settled for par on the final hole when his 15-foot birdie chip grazed the edge of the hole and stayed out. After opening with rounds of 66 and 73 to make the cut by a stroke, he had 11 birdies in the bogey-free round. http://www.cheapvikingsjerseysauthentic.com/?tag=authentic-colby-gossett-jersey . Lack made 20 saves for his third shutout of the season as the Canucks blanked the St. Louis Blues 1-0 in the first post-Olympic game for both teams night.Lionel Messi says Barcelona continue to believe in themselves despite a run of three games without a victory. Barcelona face Atletico Madrid in the Champions League quarter-final second leg on Wednesday, holding a 2-1 lead from the first leg.Recent defeats to to Real Sociedad and Real Madrid have cut Barcelonas lead at the top of La Liga to just three points ahead of second-placed Atletico but despite the scrutiny, Messi has backed his team-mates to emrge from their mini-slump. Our mentality is still the same, Messi said via his Facebook account.We work all season to give ourselves the best chance of reaching the final and winning titles. We continue to believe in ourselves. Barcelona manager Luis Enrique has played down the importance of the match Barcelona manager Luis Enrique has made light of the importance of the match, insisting that every game from now until the end of the season is equally important.Its an advantageous result, but the tie is open, he said in the pre-match press conference.I dont feel like this is the biggest game of the season. Its just as important as any other game and we wont speculate as to what the result will be. We will just try to play better than our opponents. Barcelonas Javier Mascherano is confident ahead of the Atletico Madrid game Barcelona remain on course to finish the season with five trophies and Javier Mascherano believes they need to stay fully focused on all fronts. Cheap Vikings Jerseys Authentic.  We chose to go for all titles, Mascherano said. We are the league leaders although the gap has been narrowed. We know that we have a chance to win them all, and must get through our remaining games. Atletico Madrids Diego Simeone says his team enjoys being the underdogs Meanwhile, Atletico Madrid manager Diego Simeone said his side will benefit from being the underdogs despite holding home advantage.Barcelonas players wont be affected by the atmosphere at the Vincente Calderon, he said.Theyre used to it. It will be intense and physical. They will play their normal game, but our strength is knowing they are better than us.Follow Atletico Madrid v Barcelona with our live blog tonight on skysports.com and the Sky Sports apps. Also See: A Madrid v Barcelona preview Why have Barca stumbled? 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