Ways to avoid "Little League elbow"

A local kids' sports injury expert says the new national Little League "pitch count" limits are a step in the right direction. But, Dr. Jay Noffsinger says the limits don't tell the whole story.

Dr. Noffsinger is the director of pediatric sports medicine at Cardinal Glennon Children's Hospital in St. Louis.

He said the new national Little League rules set limits on the number of pitches kids can throw per day in actual games. The rules have daily pitch-count limits for kids 10 and under, 11-12, 13-16 and 17-18.

They also dictate the number of rest days between games after pitch limits are reached.

"But, they don't take into account the throwing kids may do at other times, including playing catch with Dad in the back yard," he said.

He said "pitch count" rules are recognition by Little League officials of the danger of shoulder and elbow injuries that can occur from overthrowing.

Kid sports fans living in the St. Louis metro area certainly hear plenty about pitchers' injury woes. For instance, ace pitcher Chris Carpenter of the St. Louis Cardinals went on the disabled list after pitching in only the opening day game.

The diagnosis was that Carpenter had "moderate arthritis" and an "impingement" in his pitching elbow. So far, the doctors have recommended rest as the treatment.

Dr. Noffsinger said kid pitchers usually don't have the same sort of injuries that adults do. Kids' problems are associated with injuries to bones that are still growing, he said.

At early ages, the kids have soft "growth plates" at the ends of their bones. "At those ages, the muscles, tendons and ligaments are stronger than bones," Dr. Noffsinger said.

Too much pitching can damage those "growth plates," he said. In extreme cases, long pitching sessions can cause a ligament or tendon to tear away a piece of the soft bone.

These injuries go by names such as "Little League elbow" or "Little League shoulder."

In a recent article in the New York Times, Dr. Walter Lowe of Baylor University said, "When young kids are pushed to throw at a very high level, they don't have the hormonal ability to build a lot of strength."

Dr. Noffsinger said kids usually stop growing at puberty and "growth plates" disappear as bones harden. He said puberty come at varying ages. "It may as early as 9 or as late as 15," he said.

Too much hard throwing before puberty can do permanent damage, Dr. Noffsinger said.

The national "pitch count" rules vary by age. For instance, pitchers 10 and under have a daily maximum of 75 pitches. Anything over 60 requires three days rest.

At ages 13-16, pitchers have a daily maximum of 95 pitches. But, again, anything over 60 requires three days rest.

But, Dr. Noffsinger urges young pitchers to use these pitch-count limits to include "non-game" throwing as well.

He said kid athletes of all kinds should focus on developing correct form and technique.

"If he can, a kid ought to get a pitching coach to teach proper pitching technique," he said.

One of the first things a pitching coach will focus on is developing a pitching motion that uses the whole body. He said kids should work on developing "core strength" and strength in their legs.

He said, "Good pitching starts at the bottom. 'Arm pitchers' often have trouble later."

In developing strength in the torso and legs, Dr. Noffsinger warned against lifting heavy weights. "Weight lifting at early ages should involve repetitions with light weights and using proper lifting techniques," he said.

He said kid athletes in other summer sports also should be aware of the "growth plates" in their bones. For instance, kid tennis players can develop "tennis elbow" in much the same way as pitchers get "Little League elbow."

He said the popularity of the two-hand backhand has been a good development. That's because the backhand swing exposes a weaker set of muscles and tendons in kids.

He said kid swimmers usually have fewer problems because the water takes a lot of the weight-bearing strain off the body. However, he said swimmers could get sore shoulders because of free-style and butterfly strokes.

"Young shoulders can be pretty "loosely, goosey," he said.

Report from the West Coast

Local author tells:

Great destinations for short vacation trips

Have high gas prices and other rising expenses causing your family to reconsider taking a long vacation this summer? It might be time to consider a series of short trips to unusual places close to St. Louis.

St. Charles author Ann Hazelwood has a book full of suggestions. "100 Best Kept Secrets of Missouri" is in its second printing and available at area book stories. (For information, visit www.STL-books.com or call (314) 367-6612.)

Kids, the book is a collection of well-known and not-so-well-known places in the Show Me State that our worth a visit. And, because they are all in Missouri, most of them can be reached with a relatively short trip.

Ms. Hazelwood divides the state into five regions to make it easier for kids and their families to plan their short vacation getaways.

For instance, she has 23 of the "best kept secrets" in the St. Louis region. That includes St Louis City and County along with St. Charles, Jefferson, Franklin, Warren, Lincoln, Gasconade and Montgomery counties.

Of course, some of the "secrets" aren't really secrets to local kids and their families.

For instance, Ms. Hazelwood lists the St. Louis Zoo, the Missouri Botanical Garden and the Gateway Arch among the noteworthy destinations in the St. Louis region.

But, when asked about an unusual destination in the St. Louis Region that would be particularly interesting to kids, she quickly named the Corn Cob Pipe Museum (Secret No. 89) in nearby Washington, MO.

The museum contains samples of hundreds of pipes and cigar holders made from the cobs of white hybrid corn.

The corn has been genetically engineered. But, the engineering was to grow a larger cob, rather than more corn kernels. The factory has been making corn cob pipes since 1869 and still ships about 5,000 pipes a day. Walgreens is one of the firm's biggest customers.

For kids who like ghosts, there's the Lemp Mansion (Secret 34) in St. Louis.

Located at 3322 DeMenil in the city, the mansion was the home for the Lemp Family. That family owned one of the biggest breweries in early St. Louis. Its haunted reputation started with the suicide of Charles Lemp.

But, the family had other examples of unusual, mysterious and untimely deaths.

At one time, the mansion made the Life Magazine's list of America's most haunted places. Now, the mansion invites visitors who can order a fine meal while waiting for the ghosts to arrive.

For more, visit www.prairieghosts.com/lemp.html.

Asked about the most unusual secret for the state of Missouri, Ms. Hazelwood named Leila's Hair Museum (Secret 63) in Independence, MO.

Independence is mostly known for being the birthplace of President Harry S. Truman.

But Leila's Hair Museum gets Ms. Hazelwood's nod as best secret in Independence.

For one thing, it's the only museum of its kind in the country. And it showcases an art form that died out in the early 1900s.

The museum is recently expanded and has more than 300 hair wreaths on display. Also, there are men's and women's jewelry as well as hair samples of famous people.

The oldest hair sample on display is from 1680.

The owner also has written three books, including one for children.

If you'd like to call for information, the number is (816) 833-2955.

Some of the secrets aren't confined to one place.

For instance, there's Missouri's Traveling Fish (Secret No 57).

She is referring to the Missouri Department of Conservation's Show-Me Missouri Fish Mobile Aquarium. That's truck-mounted display of as many as 70 different native fish.

Missouri's Covered Bridges (Secret No. 72) covers four covered bridges in various places in Missouri. They are the Locust Creek Bridge, the Buford Bridge, the Union Bridge and the Sandy Creek Bridge.

(For information and locations, visit www.mostateparks.com/statemap.htm.)

Some of the secrets are attached to going businesses. In addition to the Corn Cob Pipe Museum mentioned earlier, there's Crane's Museum and Marlene's Restaurant (Secret No. 8) off the Williamsburg exit on I-70.

The museum has a diverse collection of furniture, toys, barber shop and schoolhouse equipment and tools from years past.

In this case, you can find a lot of the modern equivalents for the rural life at the nearby Crane's Country Store. It's filled modern-day with rural clothing, tools and equipment.

And Marlene's Restaurant has plenty of hearty food for sale. (For more, visit www.cranesmuseum.com).

Ms. Hazelwood said she spent nearly a year compiling the "secret" suggestions from people throughout the state. She said she considered many more suggestions than the 100 she finally settled on.

She said, "I had enough left over to write a sequel." (For more about Ms. Hazelwood's other publications, visit www.booksonthings.com.)

(Editor's Note: In future editions of Young Saint Louis.com, we will include other samples of Ms. Hazelwood's "Secrets" book. These additional citations will be included in the Places to Go;Things to Do feature. In the meantime, you or your parents might like to consider buying the book at the nearest book store.)

At Shaw Nature Reserve

Learn pioneer ways at 2008 Prairie Day

Every other year, the Shaw Nature Reserve holds a Prairie Day celebration. That's a time for kids and their families to learn about what rural Missouri was like in the pioneer days.

The 2008 Prairie Day will be Saturday, Sept. 20, at the Shaw Nature Reserve at Gray Summit, MO. Hours on the 2,400-acre nature site will be 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

There is a $3 admission charge but kids 12 and under are admitted free.

Normally, the reserve features paved or graveled paths that allow visitors to move through native prairie and woodland and near streams as they were in the days before massive urban development.

On Prairie Day, there will be plenty of make-believe settlers and Indians demonstrating things they did to make a life on the frontier. There's also an authentic sod cabin and an Indian teepee.

For the kids, there will be a chance to play pioneer games. Musicians using authentic instruments will serenade visitors with tunes of the frontier.

Barb Troutman is the special projects coordinator for the Shaw Nature Reserve. She said Prairie Day is held every-other-year to give new visitors a regular chance to experience life as lived in pioneer times.

Many of the demonstrations and displays at Prairie Day will be held in the Reserve's 250-acre tall grass prairie.

There will be parking nearby. There will be a weaver, a spinner, a blacksmith, a candle maker and a person who can make dyes from natural plants. In some cases, such as with the candle maker, kids will be able to try their hand at the old crafts.

Children also will be able to ride small horses or check out mammals, reptiles, amphibians and insects on display.

An archeologist will help visitors to understand the underlying rock and soils. There also will be a collection of flints on display.

Of course, there is food and refreshments. Included are bison burgers, homemade baked goods and kettle corn.

Native wildflowers and grass plants and seeds are available for purchase.

The Shaw Nature Reserve itself has an interesting history. Henry Shaw was concerned that heavy smog in the City of St. Louis would eventually damage plants at his Missouri Botanical Garden.

In 1925, he purchased five farms in rural areas some 40 miles west of the Botanical Garden where the air was cleaner. This was to provide a safe haven for native plants, such as the Garden's renowned orchid collections.

Much of the territory borders the Meramec River and provides an outstanding mixture of bottomland, rolling prairie and dense forest land.

As the Reserve developed, a determined effort was made to re-plant the acres with trees, plants and grasses that were native to Missouri when the pioneers first came to the area.

Several years ago, Young Saint Louis.com interviewed a group of kids from the City of St. Louis. As one of the boys was following one of the walking trails, he said, "You know, this is the first time I've ever been on a prairie or in a forest."

Here's a rundown of some of the regular features you and your family might like to explore on your own: (You can pick up a brochure that features a detailed map and descriptions of the features.)

For more information, call (636) 451-3512 or visit www.shawnature.org.

Famous Missouri dogs

A long-anticipated third fantasy novel
finally appears in print

Christopher Paolini's blockbuster first fantasy novel "Eragon," was published in 2003. (For a story on the author and a review of the book see Youngsaintlouis.com for December 2003.) The second in what was supposed to be a three book series was "Eldest" (reviewed in the October 2005 issue). Now in the fall of 2008 "Brisingr," the third book in the series has appeared.

To refresh the memory of those who are not already ardent Eragon fans, Christopher Paolini was only fifteen-years-old when he first outlined the plot for his books. A native of Montana, he was home schooled. His parents paid to publish the first version of "Eragon" in Montana. The son of an author from the east coast read the book while vacationing to fly-fish out west and, later, the boy's father showed the manuscript to his publisher. The major publishing house liked what they saw, offered Paolini a contract, and went on to market "Eragon" internationally. It was a smashing success and even made into a major motion picture. The second book in the series, published in 2005, was also a best-seller. And, now, "Brisingr," the third book in what was to be a trilogy has appeared. An 859 page book, it still isn't long enough to tell the story Paolini wants to tell. So a fourth book is promised for the near future that is expected to complete what is now called "The Inheritance Cycle," rather than "The Inheritance Trilogy."