Helmets and injury prevention

[johannrissik]

When the sheeple reach the edge of the abyss, neither neo-liberalism nor helmets will save them.

At an earlier junction though, rational thought might have been the better option.

[Headshot]

I think the helmets in cars argument is another straw man. You have a  reinforced roof above your head, airbags and a host of other protection in a car, especially a modern one. When people die in car crashes, they are often crushed and the injuries that kill could be internal as well as brain related. Not saying it would not help at all but I don't think its an equivalent situation. 

 

In cycling, its the other way around. No body protection unless you are riding off road and DH or enduro, and a good chance you will fall on your head when you fall as many on this thread have done. 

[Pah Bear]

I think the helmets in cars argument is another straw man. 

Ditto.

 

Just cloud the whole discussion with ... straw?

[marko35s]

Neoliberalism is also used to refer to relaxing/removal of regulation and antipathy toward state control...

Incorrectly but yeah maybe it is.

[arabsandals]

You are claiming have attacked his argument, but you read your words, and you will see you attacked him directly. 

 

 

 

 

See, compare:

 

"That guy is a retard." and "That guy's argument is retarded." Subtle but important difference.

meh. IT's clearly related and I intended it to be read so. You can interpret it as an independent phrase but you'd be stretching the sense of the entire paragraph to do so.

[arabsandals]

Incorrectly but yeah maybe it is.

Says you. If people consistently use a word to refer to something and you are aware of and understand their usage, seems to me that the word then has the aforementioned meaning.

[marko35s]

Says you. If people consistently use a word to refer to something and you are aware of and understand their usage, seems to me that the word then has the aforementioned meaning.

No not me, several dictionaries say so.

But rather let's move past this as we can just keep batting this back and forth all day.

[johannrissik]

It would appear that some people already have the brain damage that helmets are supposed to prevent....

 

OK, now that I have your attention, I have a serious question. Does anyone have links to reliable studies around helmet usage and injury prevention. A lot of what I have come across seems biased. Or full of assumptions.

 

And no, I'm not interested in a "should you / shouldn't you wear a helmet" debate. That we have all decided (or had decided for us)

[Patchelicious]

I once observed a guy with head injuries from a crash in a road race. He started getting all aggro with the paramedics. It was later explained to me that the aggro behaviour was as a result of the head injuries. Scary stuff.

Maybe that auntie knocked Mr Lion a bit harder than she thought.

[johannrissik]

People have oftentold stories (behind my back of course) about me being dropped on my head as a baby. I have always thought of these as a compliments.....

 

Maybe newborn babies should wear helmets too.

[V12man]

It would appear that some people already have the brain damage that helmets are supposed to prevent....

 

OK, now that I have your attention, I have a serious question. Does anyone have links to reliable studies around helmet usage and injury prevention. A lot of what I have come across seems biased. Or full of assumptions.

 

And no, I'm not interested in a "should you / shouldn't you wear a helmet" debate. That we have all decided (or had decided for us)

There are plenty of reliable large group studies - BUT - please don't think a helmet will save you in every circumstance- 2cm of polystyrene cannot offer enough protection against a car going 50kph - it might help a bit - but unlikely to be enough to prevent serious injury.

 

Never forget a helmet is primarily useful in a low speed impact - like when you topple over at a stop street and knock your head against the pavement - then it will help reduce injury - although it might not completely avoid it, it's a lot better than nothing.

[johannrissik]

This: http://www.cycle-helmets.com/helmet_statistics.html

 

and

 

this: http://www.cyclehelmets.org/1068.html

 

"The prospect of achieving such massive reductions in injuries to cyclists lies at the root of helmet promotion and helmet laws around the world. Those who have taken the trouble to analyse the paper in detail, however, have found it to be seriously flawed and its conclusions untenable. Moreover, by making different - but no less valid - assumptions, the conclusions change radically."

 

Interesting reading.

[henningvr]

I wear a helmet because it makes me look cool.... I think? #enduro

[Patchelicious]

I most certainly have had crashes where the helmet helped reduce the damage to my kop.

 

I have yet to have a fall where it contributed to the damage.

 

So for now, I'll wear one.

[V12man]

I most certainly have had crashes where the helmet helped reduce the damage to my kop.

 

I have yet to have a fall where it contributed to the damage.

 

So for now, I'll wear one.

smart boy - now go to bed...

[Capricorn]

There are plenty of reliable large group studies - BUT - please don't think a helmet will save you in every circumstance- 2cm of polystyrene cannot offer enough protection against a car going 50kph - it might help a bit - but unlikely to be enough to prevent serious injury.

 

Never forget a helmet is primarily useful in a low speed impact - like when you topple over at a stop street and knock your head against the pavement - then it will help reduce injury - although it might not completely avoid it, it's a lot better than nothing.

 

and more importantly (of late anyway), is the fact that there is no helmet out there by any brand (except one) that designs helmets that can prevent concussion. You are very likely to walk away from a nasty tumble with very superficial external injuries thanks to that helmet now in pieces or severely cracked, but that concussion you will have to some degree or other, is an internal injury and it is brain damage.