CHICAGO — Playing sports in hot, steamy weather is safe for healthy children and teen athletes, so long as precautions are taken and the drive to win doesn’t trump common sense, the nation’s largest pediatricians group says.

New guidelines from the American Academy of Pediatrics arrive just as school sports ramp up in sultry August temperatures. The advice, released today, comes a week after two Georgia high school football players died following practices in 90-plus degree heat. Authorities were investigating if the weather contributed.

The guidelines replace a more restrictive policy based on old thinking that kids were more vulnerable to heat stress than adults. New research shows that’s not true, the academy says. With adequate training, water intake, time-outs and emergency treatment available on the sidelines, healthy young athletes can play even in high heat and humidity — within reason, the guidelines say.

“The more educated parents, athletes and staff are about risks associated with heat illness, the more likely they will think twice before allowing a competitive culture to overtake sound sensibilities,” said Dr. Cynthia Devore, co-author of the policy and a physician for schools in the Rochester, N.Y. area.

Government data released last week showed that more than 3,000 U.S. children and teens younger than 20 received emergency-room treatment for nonfatal heat illness from sports or exercise between 2001 and 2009.

Over a 13 year period, 29 high school football players died from heat stroke, according to data from the American Football Coaches Association and others. Football is a special concern, because players often begin intense practice during late-summer, wearing uniforms and padding that can be stifling.