The Latest Playground Game: Whack-a-Sack

Here is some news that makes me glad I’m not in school… or a boy:   The newest fad in schoolyard “fun”?  A quick slap to the testicles.

Back in my day, the boys were all about Hacky Sack.  Now they enjoy Whack-a-Sack!

In the game of “sack tapping” or “ball tapping,” as it is called, a boy will try to slap or flick the groin of another boy to inflict discomfort or pain.

However, pediatricians warn that this lovely “game” may not be the smartest idea, with an increasing number of boys going to the doctor with serious damage to the testicles because of a “tap” that hit too hard.

In some cases, trauma sustained by sack tapping can be severe enough to rupture a testicle, an injury that can require surgery or even the amputation of the testicle.

Yeah, um, OUCH.

The fad of sack tapping may be escalating thanks to the numerous videos of it on the Internet.

“It’s a snowball effect. A kid sees it on the Internet. His little brother sees him doing and does it at his school. I see boys in elementary, junior high, and high school coming in with these injuries,” Dr. Scott Wheeler, a pediatric urologist in Minnesota, says.

“Parents need to talk to their kids about this, and hopefully that will have an impact,” Wheeler says.

Communication, schcommunication.  Buy your sons a cup, parents!

Dr. Charles Raison, a psychiatry professor at Emory University, also hopes that awareness could help nip this fad in the bud.

“Guys are very attached to their testicles, obviously. If more guys knew that people were having ruptures, perhaps the back and forth of this would die out.”

I would just like to reiterate that key quote:  “Guys are very attached to their testicles, obviously.”

Good thing we have a DOCTOR to point that out for us!