Helmets keep our safe children on their bikes or kids e-scooters. However, it is not possible to make sure your children wear helmets at all times. It is even harder to know if your kid has a good helmet with the right fit. Use the following tips to choose the right helmet for your kids.
Why Must Children Wear Helmets?
Young children are prone to bicycle injuries. According to the Centers for Disease Control, children aged five and older and young adults have the highest rates of injuries related to bicycle accidents. Unfortunately, around 60% of these injuries usually end up in emergency departments in the United States.
Your child should wear a helmet to reduce the risk of head injury. A helmet reduces the risk of head injuries by around 85% since most of the bicycle-related injuries involve the face and head of the rider. That is why a helmet is essential for safety.
How to Get Your Kids to Wear Bike Elements
The following are the best tips for encouraging your children to wear helmets:
Start early. It is much easier for your children to continue wearing their helmets if they begin wearing them early. All bike riders and the ones, who ride a tricycle, need to wear a helmet.
Involve your children as you choose their helmets. Your kids can select their helmet as long as the helmet fits properly. If your children choose their helmets, they are more likely to continue wearing them.
Set an example. Wearing a helmet as you bike encourages your children to wear their helmets.
Check the bicycle for the following safety sticker before you boy
Check inside the helmet for the Consumer Product Safety Committee (CPSC). Helmets with this sticker or label provide the highest level of protection in case of an injury.
The helmets manufactured after March 1999 MUST meet the CPSC standard. If you can see these labels; “Snell,” “ANSI,” and “ASTM,” then know they meet the standard voluntary safety standards. These safety standards were in place before 1999.
The good news is that expensive helmets do not mean they are safer
A lot of evidence shows that a cheap helmet provides the same impact protection as an expensive helmet.
Six helmet models were sent to a United States test lab by the Bicycle Helmet Safety Institute: Three helmets were under $20 and three were over $150. The performance and impact test results of these helmets were virtually the same, regardless of price.
The choice of graphics, more vents, and an easier fit are some of the things that seem to set helmets apart. This is great news for parents since they do not have to worry about the price and safety as they choose a helmet.
Here are the things you need to consider before you get a used helmet:
Do not use or buy a helmet with cracks or a broken helmet, especially if you want to get a hand-me-down or a used helmet. Also, avoid getting a helmet that was in a crash.
Remember, you cannot see the cracks in some older or used helmets. Therefore, it is not possible for these helmets to meet the current safety standards, especially they were manufactured before 1999.
How to Know If a Helmet Really Fits Your Kid’s
Here are the things to check when your kid wears the bicycle helmet:
- The helmet needs to have a snug and comfortable fit once your kid buckles the chin strap. Ensure the helmet’s straps are even, and they should form a “Y” at the bottom of your child’s ear lobe.
- The helmet should stay snug even if you try moving it up and down or side-to-side.
- Your kid should feel the helmet pulling down on her head when she opens her mouth.
- Ensure the helmet sits level on the head of your child (it should not tilt back) and the helmet needs to rest low on your child’s forehead.
- Ensure the helmet’s bottom edge is one to two finger-widths above your child’s eyebrow.
- Once you securely fasten the helmet, test your kid and ask her if she can hear or see clearly.
- One other technique for checking proper positioning is: if your kid can see the edge of her helmet when looking upwards.
