Addressing growing concerns about head injuries, two companies this month became the first to sell lacrosse headgear that is built specifically for girls and that complies with new standards from the sport’s governing body. But the availability of the equipment has only made the touchy debate over whether girls should wear it even more stark.

For a long time, the prevailing view held that wearing headgear would lead girls to play more aggressively, making the sport more like boys’ lacrosse, a full-contact sport in which hard-shell helmets have been required for years.

But last year, with worries spreading over concussions, U.S. Lacrosse, the governing body, helped adopt standards for headgear for players who want the protection.

The new girls’ headgear, though optional, is likely to be snapped up by anxious parents fearing the head injuries that occur in girls’ lacrosse. In recent studies, girls’ lacrosse had the fifth-highest rate of concussions in high school sports; only football, ice hockey, boys’ lacrosse and girls’ soccer rank higher.