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Cycle helmets save lives says Neurosurgeon - in ongoing helmet row

Surgeon says he sees three children a month with cycling head injuries he believes would not have happened had they been wearing a helmet

Cycle helmets save lives says a consultant paediatric neurosurgeon from Bristol – just a fortnight after a brain surgeon in London said that there was no point in riders wearing “flimsy little helmets” to protect their heads.

Michael Carter of Bristol Children's Hospital says he treats an average of three children a month who have suffered a head injury while cycling that he believes would not have happened if they had been wearing a helmet, reports the Bristol Post.

His views conflict with those of Henry Marsh of St George’s Hospital in Tooting, South London, who as we reported last month said that helmets had not benefited patients in his care who had been involved in bike crashes.

Mr Marsh told the Hay Festival: “I ride a bike and I never wear a helmet. In the countries where bike helmets are compulsory there has been no reduction in bike injuries whatsoever.

“I see lots of people in bike accidents and these flimsy little helmets don’t help.”

He also cited research by Dr Ian Walker from the University of Bath who found that motorists gave less space to riders wearing helmets, because they perceived them as being safer than those without the headgear.

But Mr Carter insisted that the case against wearing helmets was “weak” and often founded on research that was small in sample size. He also said his experience at work contrasted with that of Mr Marsh.

In support of his views, he cited Cochrane Review studies which combine the results of a number of studies from around the world.

He said: "We get an enormous number of cycling accidents coming in here. The vast majority of head injuries seen are not life threatening. But often [they are] painful and disruptive and require inpatient treatment. Generally it's easy to see that they could have been reduced or prevented if they were wearing helmets."

Among criticisms levelled at Cochrane Reviews in the area of cycle helmets, however, is that they are not truly independent since some reviewers have focused on their own studies and discount others, and that they do not address rotational injuries.

Another concern expressed at some studies from jurisdictions where helmets are compulsory is that they fail to analyse any perceived drop in head injuries among cyclists in the context of reduced levels of riding bikes once people have become legally obliged to wear a helmet.

CTC and Sustrans both oppose compulsion in the UK because they believe the overall health benefits associated with cycling in relation to the population as a whole outweigh any reduction in the number of cyclists they believe would follow helmets being made mandatory.

Mr Carter cited one recent instance where a youngster was struck in the head by a wing mirror and he maintained that had they been wearing a helmet, they would have been uninjured.

The circumstances of the incident were not reported, so it is unclear whether the child rode into the car, or the vehicle struck the youngster, in which case the incident could perhaps have been avoided altogether had the driver given the cyclist more room.

Unlike Mr Marsh, who has been cycling for 40 years and sports a cowboy hat while on his bike, Mr Carter no longer rides one following three separate incidents last year in which two of his friends were seriously injured and another killed.

While some might see that decision as being one based on his individual experience, unfortunate as it is, rather than looking at the wider picture, he asserts that his home city is unsafe for bike riders.

"Bristol is advertised as a cycling friendly city,” he said. “But it's actually an old Victorian city with small narrow roadways and a large volume of traffic. The roads were never designed for motorists and cyclists to use together.

"Cycle paths are incomplete throughout the city and this poses a real risk to cycle traffic. Wearing a helmet is simple and cheap. It's a minor inconvenience that at worst might be uncomfortable on a hot day, but at best might save your life."

Simon joined road.cc as news editor in 2009 and is now the site’s community editor, acting as a link between the team producing the content and our readers. A law and languages graduate, published translator and former retail analyst, he has reported on issues as diverse as cycling-related court cases, anti-doping investigations, the latest developments in the bike industry and the sport’s biggest races. Now back in London full-time after 15 years living in Oxford and Cambridge, he loves cycling along the Thames but misses having his former riding buddy, Elodie the miniature schnauzer, in the basket in front of him.

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122 comments

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oozaveared replied to mooleur | 10 years ago
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mooleur wrote:
mrmo wrote:
mooleur wrote:

Well said. Completely agree - the same happened to me, my life was saved by the presence of a helmet and since I've been a firm advocate!!

Prove the helmet saved your life? It MAY have done, it may have reduced the injury, it may have saved you getting a graze.

You can't know that in your crash your helmet was effective.

there is also the pro helmet question of which standard, why are helmets being sold today LESS effective than those being sold 20years ago. When I started mtbing, everything was buy Snell, it was the best standard, today, apart from Specialized?, you won't find a snell helmet and the current EN-BS standard is far less demanding.

The paramedics stated the impact on the helmet saved me from life threatening injuries which would have a strong likelihood of either ending or dramatically changing my life. TBF I took that as gospel, I ain't no Dr but that squishy bit at the back of my head that the helmet just about protected is pretty much the most vulnerable bit, I'm damn glad I was wearing one and this isn't a "pro helmet argument" here this is simply me stating the fact that I would never have liked to have known the outcome, be it negative or not, of that crash had I not been wearing one.

Well my nephew is a paramedic and a lovely lad. But there's nothing in the fact that he is a paramedic that gives him any more insight on the effectiveness of styrofoam to aborb impact or otherwise that the average man on the Clapham omnibus has. If he had the facts about what helmets are designed to do and how they work then your informed paramedic would probably be shocked about how very small the impact protection from a cycle helmet actually is. Many people are operating on the assumption that a cycle helmet is maybe a not very good motorcycle helmet in its efficacy. That's wrong by any standard of measurement.

The laws of physics, cycle helmet design, the impact absorbtion capacity of styrofoam are not a matter of opinion. Helmets are rated for 50 Joules. and that's it. I am 70Kg. so if you reverse the formula to give you the speed that the 50 joules of impact absorbtion will protect me at is 3mph

ie 50 = half of 70 x Vsquared. The answer is that V is ~ 1.18m/s.

1.18m/s = ~ 2.7mph.

People really do need to know just how little protection cycle helmets actually offer. And it's easy. Do the maths.

I am pro choice by the way. Choose to wear a helmet if you want. But don't do it because you "believe" that it offers much if any protection in a big impact.
And yes I have heard the would you like to be hit by a car wearing your helmet or not wearing your helmet, as if that is a clinching argumant. Something is better than nothing right? But that just indicates the scale of misunderstanding. It's a a bit like saying would you like to be shot wearing your T shirt or bare chested.

Make your choice but the outcome is the same except the T shirt gets ruined.

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fukawitribe replied to oozaveared | 10 years ago
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oozaveared wrote:

If he had the facts about what helmets are designed to do and how they work then your informed paramedic would probably be shocked about how very small the impact protection from a cycle helmet actually is.

You're right, they're not brilliant at impact protection, no - although your maths is a little simplistic (instant deceleration at full load, e.g. landing vertically and rigidly on your head). That said, much of the reason I generally wear a helmet is to avoid small to mid-range bangs, cracks, bumps and lacerations - like when I dragged and bounced my head, arm, hip and ankle during a 20mph off on a roundabout - which they can seemingly help with quite well in my experience. I might be alone in that regard mind, difficult to say.

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mooleur replied to oozaveared | 10 years ago
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oozaveared wrote:

Well my nephew is a paramedic and a lovely lad. But there's nothing in the fact that he is a paramedic that gives him any more insight on the effectiveness of styrofoam to aborb impact or otherwise that the average man on the Clapham omnibus has. If he had the facts about what helmets are designed to do and how they work then your informed paramedic would probably be shocked about how very small the impact protection from a cycle helmet actually is. Many people are operating on the assumption that a cycle helmet is maybe a not very good motorcycle helmet in its efficacy. That's wrong by any standard of measurement.

The laws of physics, cycle helmet design, the impact absorbtion capacity of styrofoam are not a matter of opinion. Helmets are rated for 50 Joules. and that's it. I am 70Kg. so if you reverse the formula to give you the speed that the 50 joules of impact absorbtion will protect me at is 3mph

ie 50 = half of 70 x Vsquared. The answer is that V is ~ 1.18m/s.

1.18m/s = ~ 2.7mph.

People really do need to know just how little protection cycle helmets actually offer. And it's easy. Do the maths.

I am pro choice by the way. Choose to wear a helmet if you want. But don't do it because you "believe" that it offers much if any protection in a big impact.
And yes I have heard the would you like to be hit by a car wearing your helmet or not wearing your helmet, as if that is a clinching argumant. Something is better than nothing right? But that just indicates the scale of misunderstanding. It's a a bit like saying would you like to be shot wearing your T shirt or bare chested.

Make your choice but the outcome is the same except the T shirt gets ruined.

It split, rather than absorb and compress, which is what led our ambulance conversation to believe that this crack would have been the impact of hitting something sharp (we think probably the pavement corner). Said informed paramedic was certainly right that the split in the shell meant that the helmet, while not doing it's designed job of compressing, was doing a worthwhile job in being there before my head. I'm definitely not denying the science of how road helmets are designed to work essentially renders them pretty poorly equipped for most scenarios, but in some cases - even if they're rare - helmets can prove to be useful.

Might also be worth noting that while the equation relates to immediate impact, if we were to hit a car travelling at one speed while travelling at another, dependent on weight and environmental variables this would mean the possible final impact of the helmet/head would be reduced to, perhaps, an insignificant enough speed that would make its use viable.

Long and short - cyclist hits front of car, cyclist tumbles around 4-5 times before hitting road, tumbles again possibly 2-3 times before head reaches final impact... despite the reduced speed actually not causing too much damage, with there being important softer areas around the skull, the helmet could play a pretty significant role in protecting those. Then again, it might even do the opposite.  1

My choice is the fact that I want to avoid the risk of one of those few occurrences, even if it's 1000 to 1. I've done the maths and despite the rare probability in my opinion I'd like to make every precaution I can to preserve my own life.

I'm rambling now!

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farrell replied to Ordinary Cycling Girl | 10 years ago
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Ordinary Cycling Girl wrote:

I just don't get why people are so arrogant

Your mate binned it so that means everyone else must be arrogant?

Perhaps not the best way of making friends and influencing people don't you think?

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oldstrath replied to Ordinary Cycling Girl | 10 years ago
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Ordinary Cycling Girl wrote:

I feel quite strongly about this subject after witnessing a friend of mine have a fall from her road bike on a corner, which didn't involve a car. She knocked herself unconscious and cracked her helmet in the process - the crack in her helmet would have been a crack in her skull had she not been wearing it. I just don't get why people are so arrogant to think it won't happen to them. It's just not worth it. You are not invincible. (I wrote a post on this over on my blog and was surprised to hear via twitter how many people are so against helmets...mainly mountain bikers, I might add). I value my brain and think it's worth protecting.

Maybe it would have been a crack in her skull, maybe it wouldn't. maybe without the helmet she wouldn't have lobbed the bike, or would have fallen better and not hit her head. The fact is that I don't know and neither do you. You want to wear a helmet while cycling that's fine, good for you. I can't understand why you wouldn't be equally keen on wearing one while walking, driving a car, standing in the shower, ...

But no-one has to be rational all the time. The real issue is not whether you want to wear a helmet, the real issue is whether you have so mistaken the risks associated with different behaviours that you want to devote time and effort to compelling me to wear a helmet, instead of focussing time and effort on removing motorised traffic from our roads and providing safer options for cyclists and pedestrians

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factor41 replied to oldstrath | 10 years ago
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oldstrath wrote:

...You want to wear a helmet while cycling that's fine, good for you. I can't understand why you wouldn't be equally keen on wearing one while walking, driving a car, standing in the shower, ...

My car has a lot of airbags which should help protect my head in case of impact. Opportunities for my head to hit the kerb/road at 30-40mph seem fairly low while walking or showering. Am I doing it wrong?  7

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oldstrath replied to factor41 | 10 years ago
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 38

factor41 wrote:
oldstrath wrote:

...You want to wear a helmet while cycling that's fine, good for you. I can't understand why you wouldn't be equally keen on wearing one while walking, driving a car, standing in the shower, ...

My car has a lot of airbags which should help protect my head in case of impact. Opportunities for my head to hit the kerb/road at 30-40mph seem fairly low while walking or showering. Am I doing it wrong?  7

Don't need to hit your head at 30 mph. Doubt the children Mr Carter saw had been doing 30 mph, and there's little evidence a helmet would protect you if you were travelling at that speed when you landed. Go and ask your local neurosurgeon where most of his cases get injured - slipping in the shower will be high up there.

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oozaveared replied to Ordinary Cycling Girl | 10 years ago
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Ordinary Cycling Girl wrote:

I feel quite strongly about this subject after witnessing a friend of mine have a fall from her road bike on a corner, which didn't involve a car. She knocked herself unconscious and cracked her helmet in the process - the crack in her helmet would have been a crack in her skull had she not been wearing it. I just don't get why people are so arrogant to think it won't happen to them. It's just not worth it. You are not invincible. (I wrote a post on this over on my blog and was surprised to hear via twitter how many people are so against helmets...mainly mountain bikers, I might add). I value my brain and think it's worth protecting.

NO NO NO NO NO. This is nonsense on stilts. It completely misunderstands how a helmet is supposed to work. If the helmet cracks it is because it didn't work. It was overwhelmed by the impact.

The way a helmet is designed to work is for the styrofoam to absorb the impact by compressing. It only works at between 50 to 100 Joules. The BS EC and US standard is 50 joules some of the better helmets brand new and perfectly worn may give up to 100 joules of impact protection.

If the impact is of such a force that the styrofoam is unable to contract quickly enough then it cracks, splits right open. In so doing it fails to absorb the impact.

Your friend was not saved by a helmet. Her head received exactly the same impact as it would had she not been wearing a helmet. She was concussed despite wearing a helmet because the helmet failed completely. It provided no protection at all and transferred the impact energy straight to the skull. It failed completely because it wasn't designed to absorb that kind of impact. It is generally the speed of impact that causes the split. Lower velocity higher mass impacts of the same overall force don't cause failure so often.

This velocity effect is the same effect as people that break bricks with a Karate chop. The effect is a shockwave through the material. You could send more force but more slowly ie increase the mass and reduce the velocity in the equation and the brick would not break.

Helmets do not fail and save your skull. They just fail and in failing don't absorb any impact energy, they just transfer it.

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Stumps | 10 years ago
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I just love reading all the comments regarding helmets both for and against because there are some real plonkers.

When this govt or the next make helmets compulsory, because it will happen, due to financial reward by way of a ticket then it will be a nightmare to control / regulate in some areas.

However in a much earlier post about helmets i produced a set of results about helmet use in the area where i live and work. If my memory serves me correctly it was well into the 90% bracket that wear a helmet whilst on road bikes but the usage by mtb users was much much lower.

Obviously the road cyclists in the North East have a lot more sense than other areas  3

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mrmo | 10 years ago
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http://www.cyclehelmets.org/1081.html

thought I would throw this in,

Quote:

In a recent Court case, a respected materials specialist argued that a cyclist who was brain injured from what was essentially a fall from their cycle, without any real forward momentum, would not have had their injuries reduced or prevented by a cycle helmet. This event involved contact against a flat tarmac surface with an impact energy potential of no more than 75 joules (his estimate, with which I was in full agreement). The court found in favour of his argument. So a High Court has decided that cycle helmets do not prevent injury even when falling from a cycle onto a flat surface, with little forward momentum. Cycle helmets will almost always perform much better against a flat surface than any other.

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fukawitribe replied to mrmo | 10 years ago
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mrmo wrote:

http://www.cyclehelmets.org/1081.html

thought I would throw this in,

Quote:

In a recent Court case, a respected materials specialist argued that a cyclist who was brain injured from what was essentially a fall from their cycle, without any real forward momentum, would not have had their injuries reduced or prevented by a cycle helmet. This event involved contact against a flat tarmac surface with an impact energy potential of no more than 75 joules (his estimate, with which I was in full agreement). The court found in favour of his argument. So a High Court has decided that cycle helmets do not prevent injury even when falling from a cycle onto a flat surface, with little forward momentum. Cycle helmets will almost always perform much better against a flat surface than any other.

..and this a bit further down...

My purpose is not to dissuade people who wish to, from wearing cycle helmets. They do, I promise, work a little better against a flat surface, than the Court decided in the case I cited above. After all the Snell B-90 standard called for four impacts on each test sample, two of which were tested against flat surfaces with an impact energy of 100 joules each. The tragedy is you cannot buy helmets to this standard any more. Manufacturers prefer the easier standard that they helped to write.

Rather my purpose is to illustrate that the whole cycle helmet issue contains many hidden issues of which most researchers are quite unaware.

Referring back to the Court case mentioned early, the very eminent QC under whose instruction I was privileged to work, tried repeatedly to persuade the equally eminent neurosurgeons acting for either side, and the technical expert, to state that one must be safer wearing a helmet than without. All three refused to so do, stating that they had seen severe brain damage and fatal injury both with and without cycle helmets being worn. In their view, the performance of cycle helmets is much too complex a subject for such a sweeping claim to be made.

End of the first paragraph is telling IMO... but anyway, as you told me, we shouldn't be talking about "F**** helmets".

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mrmo replied to fukawitribe | 10 years ago
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fukawitribe wrote:

End of the first paragraph is telling IMO... but anyway, as you told me, we shouldn't be talking about "F**** helmets".

Exactly, which is better being hit by a car not wearing a helmet, being hit by a car wearing a helmet, or not being hit by a car.

Which problem would you put the effort into solving?

Helmets are just a distraction, sometimes they help, sometimes they don't. What the helmet debate does achieve is to allow the elephants to have a rave in the room.

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andyp | 10 years ago
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'I keep seeing the phrase 'i believe......' both from this Michael Carter fella and from the "Ive got this mate who fell off ....."crowd
Its fair enough the helmet nazis justifying their delusional reliance on a bit of plastic and preface their anecdotes using the the phrase but when a man of science uses it they immediately undermine their own argumen'

Absolutely the opposite.
A man of science knows that using the phrase 'I believe...' is the ONLY and correct way to talk about this kind of thing.

It is his opinion, and only that. He is not claiming something as fact from anecdotal evidence and that is good science.

Absolutely right. (but bonkers to believe that).

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zanf | 10 years ago
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I would suggest that Michael Carter gets in touch with Dr Ian Roberts, who used to work in paediatrics A&E and was also of the opinion that all cyclists should wear helmets until he began his research with the CRASH trials.

He documents it all in his book 'The Energy Glut' and actually argues that we should be fighting against overuse of vehicles, cutting back on road building as the case for them increasing economic growth is not supported and redesign cities for people before we're all too obese and riddled with related illnesses to move/breathe.

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leqin replied to zanf | 10 years ago
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zanf wrote:

The Energy Glut' and actually argues that we should be fighting against overuse of vehicles, cutting back on road building as the case for them increasing economic growth is not supported and redesign cities for people before we're all too obese and riddled with related illnesses to move/breathe.

Is this because not doing some exercise causes obesity?

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zanf replied to leqin | 10 years ago
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leqin wrote:

Is this because not doing some exercise causes obesity?

If you really want to reduce it to such a smartarsed comment, then yes.

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leqin replied to zanf | 10 years ago
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zanf wrote:
leqin wrote:

Is this because not doing some exercise causes obesity?

If you really want to reduce it to such a smartarsed comment, then yes.

I was not being smartarsed and I am deeply offended that you should assume that I was being so, but not suprised - this is road.cc - it is overflowing with people who are

So I will now switch on my smartarse circuit and ask you another question and you can give me your smartarsed answer.

According to the BBC website last week, although it was it was reported elsewhere, scientific investigation seems to be showing with a great deal of correlation that our modern day exposure to artificial light is a major factor in humanity's tendency to become fat and obese and that this, along with other factors, is why we are seeing a ever growing obesity epidemic - based on that would you propose that we should design our homes and citys so that we give up artificial light, which would have to include street lighting, headlamps, that multi megaton Cree LED mountain bike light you just armed your cheap MTB with - your smartphone - your TV - the screen your looking into at this moment... so, at a even more fundamental level and staying right within the bounds of science, we would have to give up things which produce electromagnetic radiation and, naming just one thing - just one thing - that causes you and me and indeed everybody here on road.cc to produce electromagnetic radiation then are you prepared to give up riding your bike so that you cannot become a lard arse.

smartarse mode switched off

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4ChordsNoNet | 10 years ago
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I've not read all the comments, so it's possible that this point has already been said.

I think what the neurosurgeon from St George's was saying has been taken out of context slightly. I believe what he said is that the helmets currently on sale are a waste of time wearing, as they offer little protection. £9.99 from Argos isn't worth the money. How many helmets on sale have a BS Kitemark, or whatever it is these days?

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Chris James replied to 4ChordsNoNet | 10 years ago
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4ChordsNoNet wrote:

How many helmets on sale have a BS Kitemark, or whatever it is these days?

from the CTC website

http://www.ctc.org.uk/cyclists-library/regulations/standards

'Helmet Standards

Helmets for cycling are one thing where Trading Standards Officers have been keen to root out any dubious products, even though there is no law specifically prohibiting the sale of helmets that don't conform to any standard. So you can be sure that any cycling helmet in the shops will at least claim to meet a reputable standard, probably BSEN1078. The "EN" bit signifies a European standard (or "Norm") adopted by BS. But if you can find any helmets with a Snell Foundation B90 (or higher) sticker in them, that's a substantially stronger standard.'

I've never seen a helmet without the EN marking (the kit was used for British Standards which have been superseded).

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FluffyKittenofT... replied to 4ChordsNoNet | 10 years ago
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4ChordsNoNet wrote:

I've not read all the comments, so it's possible that this point has already been said.

I think what the neurosurgeon from St George's was saying has been taken out of context slightly. I believe what he said is that the helmets currently on sale are a waste of time wearing, as they offer little protection. £9.99 from Argos isn't worth the money. How many helmets on sale have a BS Kitemark, or whatever it is these days?

I'm pretty sure all of them meet the EU standards or they wouldn't be allowed to sell them. Not sure about small ebay sellers, say, but I think its a safe bet someone like Argos would have to obey the law.

Anyway, one major purpose of wearing a helmet is to avoid nagging by helmet-fixated people, and even the cheapest, most dubious, helmet can achieve that.

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LinusLarrabee | 10 years ago
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Do helmets cause more injuries than they prevent? That's the only question worth asking. From that, a rational decision can be made wether or not an individual wishes to wear a helmet.

All that other crap being argued above is the dumb part of the brain trying to justify crappy decision making. It's the same kind of stupidity in action when you see people using their mobiles whilst driving or not wearing their seat-belts. Which is fine, but FFS, just admit your dumb brains aren't working and stop trying to pretend there's some kind of rational thought behind it.

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harrybav replied to LinusLarrabee | 10 years ago
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LinusLarrabee wrote:

Do helmets cause more injuries than they prevent? That's the only question worth asking. From that, a rational decision can be made wether or not an individual wishes to wear a helmet.

Helmet-specific advice or true also of ski goggles for head-on bee impacts?

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Wolfshade replied to LinusLarrabee | 10 years ago
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LinusLarrabee wrote:

Do helmets cause more injuries than they prevent? That's the only question worth asking. From that, a rational decision can be made wether or not an individual wishes to wear a helmet.

Simples, yes.
New Zealand, introduced a mandatory cycle helmet law. In '94 there were just under 500 KSI per 100,000 cyclists. In '11 this had almost doubled to just under 900 KSI per 100,000 cyclists. The worst part is cycling dropped from just over 250,000 to 130,000.

http://rdrf.org.uk/2013/12/17/the-effects-of-new-zealands-cycle-helmet-law/

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FluffyKittenofT... replied to LinusLarrabee | 10 years ago
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LinusLarrabee wrote:

Do helmets cause more injuries than they prevent? That's the only question worth asking. From that, a rational decision can be made wether or not an individual wishes to wear a helmet.

When riding a bike or just in general?

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racyrich replied to LinusLarrabee | 10 years ago
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LinusLarrabee wrote:

Do helmets cause more injuries than they prevent? That's the only question worth asking. From that, a rational decision can be made wether or not an individual wishes to wear a helmet.

Really? If that's the criteria you'll support wearing helmets, toesavers, safety googles, kevlar vests, fireproof clothing, etc ALL THE TIME. Best be safe.

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Some Fella | 10 years ago
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I keep seeing the phrase 'i believe......' both from this Michael Carter fella and from the "Ive got this mate who fell off ....."crowd
Its fair enough the helmet nazis justifying their delusional reliance on a bit of plastic and preface their anecdotes using the the phrase but when a man of science uses it they immediately undermine their own argument.
I believe in unicorns but it doesnt make them real.
When someone starts their sentence with "I *know* for sure after extensive and definitive research that helmets are effective...." then i may start to listen.

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gazza_d | 10 years ago
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I wonder how many children he sees a month with head injuries from falling over whilst playing or whilst in cars?

Also basing your sample on the injured people who come though the door of your ED means it's already flawed.
How many children ride bikes in his area?
How many suffer other injuries?
Do we know how the incidents occurred and who was at fault?

Safer streets would be a better call than helmets

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ChairRDRF | 10 years ago
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Pro cyclists are far, far more likely to be injured per hour riding than typical commuter cyclists. I used to think that this was DESPITE them wearing the latest helmets, having the best maintained bikes, information through race radio of hazards ahead, a vested interest in not crashing, high quality bike handling skills and superb back up medical care immediately available. I now think that one of the reasons for their very high rate is BECAUSE of wearing the latest helmets, having the best maintained bikes etc. Has helmet wearing resulted in reduced chances of serious injury (or even death) amongst racing cyclists?

So don't forget risk compensation/ behavioural adaptation - I talk about as a reason for the negative effects of increased levels of helmet wearing following compulsory helmet wearing here: http://rdrf.org.uk/2013/12/27/the-effects-of-new-zealands-cycle-helmet-l...

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racyrich | 10 years ago
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All arguments about helmets should include the simple question : what do the Dutch do?

They manage to do 10 times the cycling mileage we do without wearing helmets and without suffering carnage.
It's pretty simple. People don't just fall off their bikes and die. It's incredibly rare for someone to suffer a fatal injury from a cycling (but not a motoring) related injury. It takes a serious impact. One incurred by a motor vehicle.

Ignore pro cyclists. Again, they weren't dying in their droves when they didn't wear helmets. Paris-Roubaix helmet-less was not some sort of Russian roulette. It's a massive, helmet manufacturer-led con.

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700c | 10 years ago
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This guy isn't talking about compulsion, he's talking about his experience and belief based on his expertise of head injury.

You'll never get the statistics to give a definitive answer on this, simply because you can't compare what would have happened to an injured child if the same accident occurred with/ without a helmet.

The experience and professional opinion of this guy is useful, and can't be rubbished by quoting from google, as people are trying to do here.

As for arguments trying to rubbish 'common sense', well you would think people would understand that helmets offer some physical protection, however small, regardless of views on all the external factors, but certain people on here will argue white is black, so may as well save your breath.

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