Sports Medicine physician Dr. Pietro Tonino of Loyola University Medical Center advises parents of high school athletes not to allow their children to play football because of the high risk of injuries involved.

Football, the most popular sport in the United States, is also one of the most violent sports in the country. Football thrives on the phrase "survival of the fittest."

Survey of Football Injury Research Annual Report 2012 by The National Center for Catastrophic Sport Injury Research, revealed that over 2 million high school athletes sustain sports injuries each year, with hockey and football causing the majority of these injuries. It is but natural that parents worry about their child's safety. Injuries, more specifically concussions, to these still-developing children are the main cause of concern for high school football coaches and administrators of this generation.

According to The American Orthopaedic Society for Sports Medicine, over 40,000 high school football kids get a concussion every year

In a press release, sports medicine physician Dr. Pietro Tonino of Loyola University Medical Center advises parents of high school athletes not to allow their children to play football.

"When you have two human beings collide at a high rate of speed - especially if one of them is much bigger than the other - then significant injuries are quite possible," Tonino said. "I don't believe it is worth the risk. So I advise parents to try to steer their children to alternative sports. We are just beginning to understand the long-term consequences of injuries sustained at young ages."

Injuries incurred while playing the game include ankle sprains, shoulder injuries and overuse injuries that cause back pain and patellar tendonitis (knee pain), with football knee injuries, especially to the anterior or posterior cruciate ligament (ACL/PCL), being the most common among these. Heat stroke risks are also relatively high, especially during summer training camp.

A study published in the journal Pediatrics rated the number of injuries in football and baseball to be similar but while only 3 percent of baseball injuries are serious, this number rises to 14 percent with regards to football.

Concussions are one of the physician's biggest worries. He also found that as a developing brain differs physiologically from the adult brain, young adults take longer to recover from a brain injury.

While helmets may reduce these injury numbers by a bit, recent reports suggested that the type, brand and age of the helmets do not lower the risk of concussions sustained while playing.

Tonino was also disappointed to find that despite these staggeringly high injury rates, there is barely any medical supervision during football games and practices. He revealed that he is aware of the fact that many parents would prefer their children play the game. For such parents, the physician advises that they take proper precautions.