Are Helmets Really Necessary
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Why Are Helmets A Necessity?
The biggest reason you should wear a helmet : It will significantly lessen the force of your impact when and if you fall. If you google “bike helmets are…” the suggested/most popular searches are “bike helmets are gay” ”useless” ”dangerous” ”ugly There is a bad culture around bike helmets (no one likes them) 1989 study proved that whoever wore helmets had 85% less head injury 88%had less brain injury. 1978-San Diego County 6% bike 10% motorbike 15% vehicle-pedestrian 16% non vehicle/non bike 53% motor vehicles Are Helmets A Risk To Your Health? You will still get an injury even if you wear a helmet Your head is exposed at all times biking and other sports aren’t special We don’t need to wear helmets when we are walking down stairs or running on the sidewalk There is always a risk and sports aren’t an exception 1978-San Diego County 6% bike 10% motorbike 15% vehicle-pedestrian 16% non vehicle/non bike 53% motor vehicles 2001-New York Times article-rate of bike head injuries had risen 51% over ten years False sense of security for biker...take more risks (more vulnerable to getting injuries) more helmets=less bikers=more danger...cars aren’t watching out for bikers How do you use this knowledge in life? When you are doing outdoor activities and playing sports you should make sure you have the right gear. For example, when you are skateboarding you should have the correct gear: elbow and knee pad/guards, helmet, wrist guards. These help prevent many accidents. According to Howie Chong 88% of people who decide to wear helmets receive less brain injury and 85% receive less head injury. There is a lot of controversy around helmets and just because you want to do a sport, like skateboarding, doesn’t mean that you can't wear a helmet. Helmets expand the time that force is applied to your head and this helps the impact to your head and brain less. Now just because helmets are”uncool” doesn’t mean that you are unable to do the same tricks as your friends. Citations http://orthoinfo.aaos.org/topic.cfm?topic=a00273 http://www.denverpost.com/youthsports/ci_6482662 http://www.howiechong.com/journal/2014/2/bike-helmets#.VIpHahs5CP8 http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/innovations/wp/2014/05/15/why-you-should-always-wear-a-bike-helmet-in-one-chart/ |