Poor, Minority Children Less Likely to Wear Bike Helmets
- December 6, 2016
- Sandy
LOS ANGELES – After pouring over thousands of trauma records and accident comparisons, researchers have concluded that minority children and kids in impoverished households were less likely to be wearing a bike helmet in a crash than white or more affluent children.
Doctors from across the nation presented their research at the Academic Surgical Congress in Las Vegas. After analyzing more than 7,600 bike accidents involving children under 16, researchers discovered that just 22 percent of the children wore helmets. Digging further, researchers discovered that skipping a helmet was also more common among Hispanic and black children, among other minorities.
Los Angeles bike accident attorneys at The Barnes Firm say these findings show a deadly trend that can easily be adjusted.
“Head injuries are some of the most dangerous and lethal injuries for children in Los Angeles,” bicycle accident lawyer John Sheehan said. “Simply wearing a helmet decreases the risk of injury and it greatly increases the chances of surviving a dangerous accident.”
More than 3 million cyclists are treated in emergency rooms every year and more than 300 children are killed after a bicycle crash, researchers wrote.
Doctors from Duke University Medical Center discovered black children were 62 percent less likely to be wearing a helmet at the time of an accident and kids insured by Medicaid were 67 percent less likely to use a helmet. Researchers said this suggests an income disparity.
The study also concluded that kids in the south and southwest were seriously injured more often than their northeast counterparts. Doctors attributed this to a lack of safety accessories.
“Accident records show the majority of the bicycle deaths stem from head injuries,” Sheehan said. “That’s why several cities have helmet giveaways once in a while but they tend to be northeastern cities like New York and Buffalo.”
California requires children under 18 to always wear a helmet while on bicycles, scooters, skate boards, or inline skates. Still, The Golden State leads the nation in bicycle crashes, recording 338 deaths in three years.
Legally, Los Angeles bicycle accident attorneys say claims can still be made if a child was not wearing a helmet but parents can help prevent serious accidents.
“Parents need to set good examples and be a role model for their children by wearing helmets themselves,” Sheehan said. “It not only makes riding safer for you; it positively influences your child’s attitude toward safety as well.”
The Barnes Firm 1-(800) 800-0000