Wear a helmet when skiing, snowboarding, roller skating or mountain biking
- High value
- Evidence A
- Buys life
- Costs a little
- Takes minutes
- No willpower
In plain words
Wearing a helmet when skiing or snowboarding lowers the chance of a head injury in a fall or collision by about one third, and by about 60% for children under 13. Wearing a helmet on a bicycle lowers serious head injuries by about 70% and fatal head injuries by about two thirds. Wearing a helmet does not make neck injuries more likely.
- Cost
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A helmet costs a few hundred yuan. It takes a few seconds each time to put it on and fasten the strap.
- What you get
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The ski and snowboard figures come from a pooled analysis of 12 studies. Most compared people with head injuries to other people and looked at who had worn helmets (case-control). People who wore helmets had an odds ratio (OR) for head injury of 0.65 (95% CI 0.55–0.79), about 35% lower. In the studies that included children under 13, the OR was 0.41 (0.27–0.59), about 59% lower. For neck injury the OR was 0.89 (0.72–1.09), not raised. The bicycle figures come from 40 studies and more than 64,000 (6.4万多) people who crashed or collided. Head injury OR 0.49 (0.42–0.57), about 51% lower. Serious head injury OR 0.31 (0.25–0.37), about 69% lower. Fatal head injury OR 0.35 (0.14–0.88), about 65% lower. Face injury OR 0.67 (0.56–0.81), about 33% lower. Neck injury OR 0.96 (0.74–1.25), no link seen. The Beijing Municipal Sports Bureau (北京市体育局) says that after Beijing's local standard for ski areas was revised in 2017, a helmet is required to enter the advanced runs
- Notes
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These figures are the chance of a head injury once you have fallen or crashed; a helmet does not make you fall less. No pooled study of the same kind was found for roller skating and skateboarding; the figures are carried over because the ways of falling and hitting the head are similar. The helmet must fit and the strap must be fastened tight, and try on a rented one first. For helmets on motorcycles and e-bikes, see §1.2 (wear a helmet).
- Evidence grade
- A : Specific numbers from meta-analyses, large cohorts or randomized trials; for law and policy, the statute or official text.
- Sources
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- Russell K, Christie J, Hagel BE (2010). The effect of helmets on the risk of head and neck injuries among skiers and snowboarders: a meta-analysis. CMAJ, 182(4), 333-340. https://doi.org/10.1503/cmaj.091080
- Olivier J, Creighton P (2017). Bicycle injuries and helmet use: a systematic review and meta-analysis. International Journal of Epidemiology, 46(1), 278-292. https://doi.org/10.1093/ije/dyw153
- 北京市体育局. 北京市政协十三届四次会议第1276号提案的答复意见：「明确要求滑雪者必须佩戴头盔方能进入高级道滑雪区域」. https://tyj.beijing.gov.cn/bjsports/zfxxgk_/1421305/jytablgz/11180211/index.html
Mentioned in
- Wear a helmet on a motorcycle or e-bike, and fasten the strap
- Don't let a child under 12 ride a bicycle on the road or a child under 16 ride an electric bicycle on the road: if they hit someone, the parents pay, and if they are hit themselves, they may have to bear part of it
- If a child hits their head during sports and afterward has a headache, dizziness or feels dazed, don't let them play again that day; if there is repeated vomiting, growing drowsiness or a worsening headache, go to the emergency department right away
Translated from the Chinese original. Original book, section 22, tip 12. Content may be out of date and rules differ by place. When you actually deal with an agency, a doctor or a court, follow what local officials, doctors and lawyers tell you. Disclaimer