At least 50 high school football players in the U.S. have died from heat stroke after falling ill on the field in the past 25 years. And high school athletes in other sports are not immune from the risks – female cross-country athletes are twice as likely to suffer from heat-related illnesses as athletes in any other high school sport.

The numbers are especially shocking when you consider that heat-related illnesses and deaths are entirely preventable.

While sports equipment has improved over time to protect against concussions, young players and college athletes are facing increasing risks from rising heat.

Jessica R. Murfree, visiting assistant professor of sport management and ACES faculty fellow, and Natasha Brison, assistant professor of sport management, both at Texas A&M University, both study sport ecology and legal aspects of sport, and they wrote on this subject for The Conversation.