Or is teen ds re bike helmet?

[choosingchilli]

Ds (14) used to wear his helmet with no issues.

He hasn't ridden his bike in about 18 months purely because our rules are no helmet no bike.

He has a bike sitting in the garage, he wants to ride it to hang out with his friends in the local park but NONE of his friends wear a helmet and he freely admits he won't wear his because he will get "roasted" by his mates.

We're going round in circles, he knows the reason why helmets are important. I feel really strongly about this issue as I've seen brain injuries as a result of split second accidents and even though the roads around here are fairly quiet there is still always that risk.....

He's a good kid and he won't go out pretending to wear his helmet then take it off round the corner (which I half expected him to do).

I'm not usually particularly strict and even though I feel strongly about this I do understand peer pressure and I can see that the majority of teens around here don't wear helmets. AIBU in sticking to this rule?

Weeeell, I totally see your point, and YANBU as such, but if I'm honest, I'd let it go.

YANBU

We have the same rule, but my eldest is only 10.5. We will always have the same rule, I imagine he’ll be cycling to high school in time to come. He could be the best cyclist in the world, but that does not account for everybody else on the road.

My ds is 11 and also won't ride his bike anymore because we insist on him wearing a helmet. I completely agree with you. At least he's honest, I know without a doubt my ds would leave the house with it on and take it off round the corner if he thought he could get away with it!

It is hard because even motorcyclists tend not to wear them where we are. So far letting him choose helmets has worked but I can see it becoming an issue.

Sorry but I'm coming down on YABU. The evidence that wearing a helmet makes you genuinely any safer is flimsy at best. "My mates will laugh" is not superb weighing of factors, no, but that doesn't make him wrong. In fact, the evidence is rather stronger for helmet wearing while walking.

FTR, I wear a helmet, but I accept that this is arguably an irrational act on my part, and I do it partly to avoid hassle from misinformed drivers who seem to think it's illegal not to.

Putting it all together, your DS is likely to benefit more both short term and long term from cycling without a helmet than not cycling.

This is the number one reason why most countries don't have compulsory helmet rules for cycling.

The health benefits of regular cycling are massive. The benefits of cycling helmets and likelihood of collisions are both small.

In the long term, a tiny reduction in the amount of cycling due to a 'no cycling without a helmet' rule has huge health costs. It will kill far more people due to obesity and lack of exercise than will be saved by bike helmets.

Getting your child into a cycling habit will benefit them more (in the long term, on average) than a flimsy polystyrene helmet.

Can you get him to agree to wearing the helmet to the park, but once in the park he can take it off? Get off his bike a minute before he gets there, helmet in the backpack. I know it's not ideal but...

Aoeu and sohot

I take your point but tbh the health benefits are not a huge concern for me. He's a very active, sporty lad already.

I'd be interested to know where you've got your info from about lack of protection in wearing helmets?

I view helmets as necessary on bikes/scooters as you are less likely to have time to put your hands down and prevent your head from hitting the pavement like you would when walking/running. Helmets won't stop you getting squished by a car but they will help if you hit a pothole and flip over the bars.

My DH fell at a bmx park off a jump and landed on his head and shoulder. His helmet cracked down the full length, his skull was intact. That's what helmets are designed to do.

We had the same rule until it became clear that DS only wore it when we could see him.
I think at 14 you have to make their own choices.

... let them make their own choices.

If he's biking in traffic, bmx-ing or mountain biking then helmet should be compulsory. If he's just doodling around an estate or village then I'd leave it.

YANBU.

There is evidence that helmets don't necessarily reduce the risk of brain injuries, BUT they can reduce the risk of skull fractures.

I once cared for a patient who went out on an ATV in the middle of the night with no helmet or lights. He suffered a skull fracture that led to a severe brain injury. He died in hospital, unconscious, on a ventilator, a few days after his 21st or 22nd birthday.

I am adamant about the use of helmets.

I would make mine wear them if they were cycling on roads or racing or something. Just going to the park...I can't get worked up about

Just going to the park...I can't get worked up about

Where they are probably more likely to be attempting tricks and things?

I watched my son fall off his bike on the road. He slammed his head into the tarmac no less than three times while he slid and tumbled at speed. He ripped the skin off his chest and stomach, his arms and legs. Thankfully his head was inside his helmet and was the only part of him that was unharmed. It scared the shit out of him and me. The memory of that will stay with us both and he wouldn't even consider riding without one on. In fact, I'm surprised he ever got on a bicycle again.

When my DS was 11 he went over the handlebars on a hill.

Snapped both bones in his left arm clean in half when he extended it to break the fall and smashed the helmut.
I daren't think what would have happened to his bare head...

If you really want to know more about the efficacy of cycle helmets you can fill your boots here: cyclehelmets.org.

If you do decide they make a difference please make sure your son’s is worn properly: the helmet should be closely fitting - tight enough to leave marks when removed. In addition, the chinstrap must be tightly done up. Loose helmets are dangerous in an accident.

Ds1 has been made he same since secondary. None of the older boys, 15 or 16 seem to wear them. They roast each other about it apparently. Seems so silly, but what can you do to prevent that roasting mentality - it's hard to control what boys that age tease each other about.

I wonder who could possibly run 'bikehelmets.org' @recrudescence? What possible interest could they have in people rushing out to buy cycle helmets?

Personally, I think the outrageous scaremongering emanating from 'road safety campaigners', funded by helmet manufacturers has done more than anything else to increase obesity levels in this country. Who is going to cycle if they're led to believe they'll be killed the second they step on a bike with no helmet?

Go and let your DS have fun with his friends and get some exercise, OP. If people can manage to use boris bikes in the centre of London safely without helmets, I'm sure your DS will be just fine in the park.

TheMobileSite if it was a skate park with ramps and stuff, obviously. But my kids don't do that kind of thing at a normal park.

Has he chosen his own helmet? Got a bmx style one? Or with a fashionable brand?

Has he chosen his own helmet? Got a bmx style one? with a fashionable brand?

Offered this, he's not interested in choosing his own 🤷‍♀️

@CloudyForest

Have you actually looked at the website?

This is the kind Danny macaskill wears POC Crane Pure Helmet, Uranium Black/Hydrogen White, XS-S/ 51-54 cm, Crane Pure, Lead Blue/Hydrogen White, XS-S/51-54 www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00Q2UYWJM/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_tlf3CbZNNQ8B7?tag=mumsnetforu03-21