Have you ever wondered why the bike helmet is so important? I do now!
By mommaj
@mommaj (23112)
United States
October 18, 2009 7:09am CST
Friend of mine asked a brain surgeon (whom he was seeing for something else) if bicycle helmets were really necessary. The doctor actually said he had never seen an injury or head trauma before helmets were mandated that helmets were supposed to be worn not to cause. He did say the helmet didn't really protect the child that much. It makes me wonder who made up the law and why. Did the helmet companies have lobbyists?
2 people like this
9 responses
@rg0205 (2636)
• Hong Kong
17 Nov 09
I used to ride a motorcycle and some of my friends were lucky they had their helmets on in instances where they fell of their bikes. I think to a degree, the helmet does serve purpose to protect your head from further injury. I mean, if my I or my friend had fallen without a helmet on, then the impact would be direct and probably more harmful. I'd like to think that to a degree, it acts as a "buffer" and absorbs the impact, or some of it that could otherwise have been more damaging.
1 person likes this
@mommaj (23112)
• United States
17 Nov 09
When you are on a motorcycle yes it does act as a buffer. The impact of a motorcycle wreck is a lot worse than a bicycle wreck. I live in Fl. now where they had changed the laws that you don't need a helmet. The man that petitioned for it lost his wife. She fell off the back of the motorcylce without a helmet.
1 person likes this
@scheng1 (24650)
• Singapore
18 Oct 09
Bike helmet is not a must here, and many people are taking up cycling as a cost saver as well as exercise.
I think those folks should travel to China and see the cyclists there. I dont see them wearing helmet either, and they are such good cyclists that the ladies can cycle without the dress flying up.
1 person likes this
@mommaj (23112)
• United States
18 Oct 09
That's impressive! I think safety is important, but I don't think bicycle helmets are a necessity. In fact, it is a little more dangerous to ride a bike with the helmet because most people don't check the size and the helmet gets in the way of seeing.
@jwfarrimond (4473)
•
5 Jan 10
I have been cycling for a long time and I have never worn a cycle helmet because in the first place, I don't believe that they offer adequate protection to a head impact, and secondly because I've always thought that it will give the rider a false sense of security which may cause them to take chances.
If a cyclist is involved in a collision with a car or something even bigger, they are likely to suffer extensive injuries to other parts of the body. It's no substitute for care and attention while cycling - safe cycling practices are more likely to keep a cyclist alive than a helmet will.
@jwfarrimond (4473)
•
6 Jan 10
As far as a child who is learning to ride is concerned, I'd have her wear a helmet because a child is more likely to fall off, and does not have the experience to do so in a "safe" fashion.
@mommaj (23112)
• United States
5 Jan 10
I am glad to hear from a cyclist. I know when my daughter was learning to ride a bike I was hesitant to put the helmet on her because I remember never wearing one because it always "bothered" me. I thought of it as a distraction. I let her get use to riding her bike without the helmet, then put it on her just because she has to wear one.
@Canellita (12029)
• United States
22 Oct 09
There are many things we can not be protected from but a little protection is better than none at all. Helmets for motorcycle riding are obviously more of an issue because of the high speeds at which they travel and yet there is ongoing debate as to their necessity.
I think it depends on the head injury but when it comes to a child I would much rather err on the side of caution rather than throwing caution to the wind.
@mommaj (23112)
• United States
22 Oct 09
I guess I can agree about the safety issue. I just remember being a child and never having to put on a helmet. I hated helmets. I thought they were always heavy and cumbersome. I had my fair share of bike wrecks,did I mention I was a clutz? I never did hurt my head, except once when my neighbor ran me into a swing set. Where I hit my head a helmet wouldn't have blocked anyway. That could explain a lot! LOL
@Canellita (12029)
• United States
26 Oct 09
Yes well picture me at practically middle age with my mother strapping a bicycle helmet onto my head that she insisted I needed to have and a friend standing nearby laughing and pulling out a camera phone.
@LetranKnight25 (33121)
• Philippines
18 Oct 09
hello mommaj, well, it's better than head bashing through the floor and shaking it's brain like a fruit in the mixer. in our country, we had so many bike accidents over the past few months since the popularity of bikes here. there wasn't much bike in the recent years. and recently more accidents are coming in due to not wearing the helmet, some are arrested for not even earning one@LetranKnight25 (33121)
• Philippines
18 Oct 09
sorry i didn't realize i wrote bike there, i was just using it as a short cut for bicycles. in my book, still helmets are important..
@Nestonlady (132)
•
17 Nov 09
I've cycled for well over 20 years and didn't wear a helmet for years. They are not compulsory in the UK but more and more people are wearing them and I have worn one for some years now. I was knocked off my bike by a motorist in May of this year and my helmet was completely destroyed.If I hadn't been wearing it, that would have been my head. Need I say more?
@maximax8 (31053)
• United Kingdom
5 Jan 10
I lived and studied in the Netherlands for four months. I had a bike and did much cycling whilst I was over there. One rainy day I was cycling across a wooden bridge. My front wheel slipped and I fell off the bike. I bashed my head on the bridge and nearly lost my shoe. I had a very severe headache and felt sleepy that evening. I didn't wear a cycle helmet in the Netherlands.
In my home country I wear a cycle helmet. The worst accident on my bike I had when a car reversed into me. It dented my bike and terrified me. I went off to work really upset. I am very keen on traveling and know that in some places wearing a cycle helmet is the law. In some countries it is not law so people don't do it.
My toddler son has spina bifida and hydrocephalus. He had an operation on his head when he was two weeks old to insert a shunt into his head. I meet with the surgeon twice a year. My son must be careful with his head.
@mommaj (23112)
• United States
5 Jan 10
Did you get a concussion from the bridge? That sounds horrible.
Sorry to hear about your son. Does he wear a helmet? My friend had a metal plate in his head that he didn't need a helmet for. He had to get it changed every so often because of his head growing.
I don't know if helmets help or not when riding a bicycle. I don't ride on the road so I don't use one. Would a helmet have helped you when you hit your head on the bridge or was that a shot to the forehead where a helmet wouldn't have been anyway?
@suzzy3 (8342)
•
19 Oct 09
Thats not what we have been told ,helmets should be worn on the roads as they do save some damage if the fall off their bikes or get hit by a car.I would always have my grandchildren wear theirs at least they save some damage and the bit they save could be the bit that stops them becoming cabbages or worse.
@mommaj (23112)
• United States
19 Oct 09
What the doctor had said was that if they were hit that hard to get a skull fracture they would have internal injuries that would either kill them or keep them in the hospital for a long period of time. I'm not sure if the helmets work or not, but we will keep on using them in hopes of never finding out. LOL
@Linebacker53 (29)
• United States
23 Dec 09
The average bicicle helmet really doesnt cover that much of your head or matter with slow speeds (i never wore one), but once you get up to motorcycles and higher speeds that inch of foam between your head and the road may be your only chance to survive
