Helmets stop people cycling

[Tango]

I must say my keenness on helmets stems more from my experience mountain biking and the ridiculous number of people I meet on red and black sections without helmets

 

[ufkacbln]

I can't imagine letting a child ride a bike without a hat on

Some people can't imagine toddlers in a house without a hat either.......

.. should make a valuable contribution to risk reduction in a similar way to cycle helmets...

David W. Jenkins BA MPhil(Eng) PhD DCA FTSI
Product Safety Adviser to RoSPA

Other expert concur:

On my personal behalf, I want to lend full support to this effort to prevent and mitigate head injury in babies and small children. The consequences of head injury may be suffered during the entire life of the young victim. The emotional and financial burden can be enormous. I wish you success

Herman Delooz MD PhD FCCM FFAEM (Hons)
Former President of the European Society for Emergency Medicine.

It is a pleasure to support the 'Thudguard' in my capacity as President of the British Association for Accident and Emergency Medicine. Any device which helps to reduce the number of head injuries sustained by young children each year is most welcome

John Heyworth
President
British Association for Accident and Emergency Medicine

... and just to complete the set, the unevidenced emotive rubbish from a Paramedic....

Throughout more than 20 years as an emergency paramedic, I have encountered numerous worried parents who have called an ambulance because their young toddler took a fall and suffered a head injury. While most are minor, some have resulted in serious and debilitating injuries. The Thudguard product is the first of its kind I’ve seen that offers sufficient protection during the formative months as young children develop balance and learn to walk. It is light-weight, unobtrusive, and in my experience, well-tolerate by busy and curious youngsters. We provided one for my grandson, and I heartily encourage their use by any parent, grandparent or guardian concerned about preventing head injuries in children.

So there we have it, the Thudguard.......

 

[Tango]

Ah well, like I said I didn't come on here to argue, just do what happens on forums and put across a polite opinion

Would just be nice to hear a well though out eloquent reason why a helmet is not important enough that everyone should wear one.

Oh and that nonsense put on earlier about a ferry wasn't well thought out.

I shan't waste any of your collective time further, but if anyone has anything interesting in favour of not wearing helmets I wouldlove to read it.

 

[ufkacbln]

The point that you are missing and the evangelists always do is that it is an informed choice as to whether you wear a helmet or not.

Weigh up the pros and cons and decide whether YOU need to wear one.

Equally your choice as to helmet type. If you want to increase your risk of injury and reduce the level of protection, buy a helmet with snag points and an EN1078 certification.

If you want to decease the injuries then wear a round smooth helmet and maximise protection with product meeting Snell B95

Finally do NOT buy second hand, and ensure that it fits, or you will again be increasing the level of injury by wearing it.

 

[snorri]

Oh and that nonsense put on earlier about a ferry wasn't well thought out.

It's called risk assessment, a personal choice.
it is a bit rich of you to suggest non wearers are arrogant and setting a bad example to others while by your own admission you have not studied any statistics relating to cycle helmets..

 

[bianchi1]

Depends on your access:

http://www.bmj.com/content/321/7276/1582}Three lessons for a better cycling future[/SIZEhttp://www.bmj.com/content/321/7276/1582}Three lessons for a better cycling future[/SIZE

Malcolm J Wardlaw
BMJ 2000; 321 doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/bmj.321.7276.1582 (Published 23 December 2000)

Cheers. Link doesn't work but I found it anyway. Bit of a trashy piece of work but interesting points made. The authors fictitious account of the world (complete with photoshopped pictures) does not help but I find myself agreeing with some of his later points about cyclists being safer when they are seen as general traffic.

The updated data for accidental death is here: (male only..females are roughly the same)

The rise in deaths caused by falling in the over 75s is understandable and yet shocking.

And I think this diagram shows how safe cycling is compared with other activities

http://image.guardian.co.uk/sys-files/Guardian/documents/2011/10/28/Factfile_deaths_2_2011.pdf

 

[ufkacbln]

I agree, but it still remains a useful example of why the hysteria over cycle helmets is misplaced.

If you accept helmets work

If you want to reduce head injuries

Then the sensible and logical option would be to look at their use in the groups where the largest number of incidents occur.

Yet it seems that a head injury in the elderly, car drivers or pedestrians is "acceptable" but we need a whole theatrical lobby for introducing and promoting helmets in a group where there would be far less of a reduction

The telegraph diagram also shows why this is such a weird approach to head injury reduction
19 cyclists died for all causes, and 655 on steps and stairs.

Why have tha massive campaigns to reduce 1 injuries when a similar campaign for helmets on stairs could save so many more people from head injuries?

 

[ianrauk]

What ever you do Tango... don't go into the 'Kids on bikes' thread. You will have a heart attack looking at the pics of children having such joyous fun sans plastic lid.

 

[ufkacbln]

What ever you do Tango... don't go into the 'Kids on bikes' thread. You will have a heart attack looking at the pics of children having such joyous fun sans plastic lid.

... and no Thudguards either!

 

[Tango]

Lol, I appreciate the fact that there is a choice to be made as to whether you should or shouldn't wear a helmet.

It's also true that just because librarians aren't made to wear helmets in case a book falls on their head, there is no reason why cyclists should have to either

Choice when legally available is a good thing, but I would still love to hear an argument against helmets or even hear one that says they don't make a difference.

I appreciate I may ave come in on the back end of a thread and have missed the original discussion, but it does seem a strange argument about the right to choice, rather than whether helmets make a difference.

Making comparison to pedestrians or car drivers is fair enough, but still a bit strange when cycling associations, racing associations, etc recommend them.

I am not aware of many organisation advocating pedestrian head gear, so implying pedestrians don't have to wear them so why should why is non sense.

Personally I just enjoy getting out and riding, but when I do see a cyclist dazed as a result of a crash it does make me question their common sense. (That's a polite question, no offence intended and no names called)

On a lighter note, great weekend for pedalling

 

[bianchi1]

In the end its going to be insurance companies that dictate the 'need' to wear cycling helmets.

 

[hopless500]

[quote="

Choice when legally available is a good thing, but I would still love to hear an argument against helmets or even hear one that says they don't make a difference.

[/quote]

You need to trawl the interweb. There is plenty of information out there. The various study reports I read through before falling asleep appear to show no reduced risk of serious injury, but an increase in rotational brain injury. And no helmet is going to stop you being squished by a car. However they do appear to help in the very low impact (ie stationary falling off your bike type) incidents.

 

[Tango]

In the end its going to be insurance companies that dictate the 'need' to wear cycling helmets.

Which is unfortunate, choice is important.

No one likes being dictated to

I chose to wear a helmet because of my belief in its ability to provide me some protection

I wonder why those that chose not to wear a helmet make that choice.

Surely it can't simply be a case of, "I don't, because I don't have to"

Whilst I appear to have inadvertently stirred up a hornets nest, quite unintentionally I might add, I would love to know what the thought process is.

Also would non helmet wearing road riders wear a helmet if they were to go off road?

 

[Tango]

[quote="

Choice when legally available is a good thing, but I would still love to hear an argument against helmets or even hear one that says they don't make a difference.

You need to trawl the interweb. There is plenty of information out there. The various study reports I read through before falling asleep appear to show no reduced risk of serious injury, but an increase in rotational brain injury. And no helmet is going to stop you being squished by a car. However they do appear to help in the very low impact (ie stationary falling off your bike type) incidents.[/quote]

Whilst I would rather not trawl through te Internet. Increased rotational injury does make some sense, but not sure how you would off set that to direct impact.

Maybe I am biased as a result of mountain biking where there is a recognised need for protection for various parts of the body including the noggin

 

[Tango]

Oh, you're back then? Just try reading a random selection of threads in this cunningly entitled 'Helmet and Headphone Debates' forum. Some of us are sick and tired of having to explain this over and over again. At least you've got down off your high horse about people being arrogant and stupid if they don't do what you do.

Sorry I didn't relise there was an explanation.