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news
White cycle helmetAussie doctors urge people to wear cycle helmets when doing DIY at home
A doctor in Australia says people should wear cycle helmets while using ladders to carry out DIY jobs around the house to protect their heads in the event of a fall.
Addressing the annual scientific congress of the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons, trainee surgeon Leigh Warr said there were around 3,500 hospital admissions following ladder falls in Australia each year, reports the Sydney Morning Herald.
But he said most of those related to men in their own homes, rather than on building sites where health & safety rules apply, and he believes the rise in home renovation shows on TV may be to blame, since they prompt people to carry out projects themselves instead of getting tradespeople to do them.
A study carried out by Dr Warr and colleagues at the Royal Adelaide Hospital and the University of Adelaide examined hospital admissions data for the last six years.
They also carried out tests on a head-form model to assess the effect on impact injuries on falls with or without a helmet, and say that there was a significant decline in the chances of a head injury, as well as the severity, if a helmet was used.
"Head injuries were almost 10 times less likely with a helmet," said Dr Warr. "The force from a fall from 2.5 metres with a helmet was the equivalent of a fall from half a metre [without one].
"Wearing a helmet is such an easy thing to do and there's not many negatives that come with it," he added.
It’s unclear why Dr Warr and his fellow researchers are recommending the use of cycle helmets, rather than protective headgear of the type used on construction sites – but with the former compulsory for cyclists in Australia for two decades now, the thinking may be that many people already have them at home.
While standards vary around the world – the website Cycling Tips has a summary of the situation in Australia here – cycle helmets are not designed to withstand falls from the height of 2.5 metres cited by Dr Warren; in the EU, for example, they are tested at a maximum drop height of 1.5 metres.
Moreover, with an average adult male in Australia standing 1.75 metres tall, that height of 2.5 metres mentioned would put the DIY enthusiast less than 1 metre up a ladder – when in reality, often they would be working at a greater height.
An official report from the Australian government, Serious injury due to land transport accidents 2003-04, discussed in a post by Mark Treasure of the Cycling Embassy of Great Britain here, found that more than a quarter of injuries sustained by car occupants, including drivers, were head injuries.
More than 4,000 such injuries were recorded last year – more than the total number of hospital admissions following injuries to any part of the body, that Dr Warr says happen in Australia due to ladder falls each year.
Simon joined road.cc as news editor in 2009 and is now the site’s community editor, acting as a link between the team producing the content and our readers. A law and languages graduate, published translator and former retail analyst, he has reported on issues as diverse as cycling-related court cases, anti-doping investigations, the latest developments in the bike industry and the sport’s biggest races. Now back in London full-time after 15 years living in Oxford and Cambridge, he loves cycling along the Thames but misses having his former riding buddy, Elodie the miniature schnauzer, in the basket in front of him.
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16 comments
Since trainee surgeon Leigh Warr doesn't appear to have looked at the data on cycle helmets in Australia, specifically whether they improve the safety of cyclists, his opinion is worth slightly less than a pile of fresh dingo droppings.
All this proves is that misguided Australians are misguided, but perhaps that didn't need proving?
I'm gonna stay in bed.....
"I'm gonna stay in bed....."
but plenty of people are killed or injured falling out of bed (I don't have the data for what they were doing at the time!) so you really need to wear a helmet 24/7, including in bed and in the shower.
What about watching TV? For example, imagine sitting at home watching cartoons, then an anvil fell on your head. You never know.
Wear one in bed too.
Darwinism in action.
I was thinking this too. Reduced reproduction rates for the helmet wearers should see these "sports" trending to zero in the population within a few generations.
Well, no, presumably the opposite, according to this guy - (he believes wearing a helmet would afford some protection..)
I do find it unlikely, however, that someone would fall off a ladder directly onto their head. Perhaps its more about knocking your head on the way down..
Surely they would be far more effective against falling objects when undertaking construction works, eg the point of wearing hard hats on construction sites, helmets when chainsawing etc etc. cycle helmet not really the right tool for the job in this case though, but perhaps better than nothing, maybe that's his point.
This advice is a bit too late for Rod Hull.
The thing is my wife hits me over the head when I don't do DIY, WE CANNOT WIN.
Re the recommendation for cycle helmets v construction ones, has more to do with the fact that the majority of construction type helmets are designed for protection against dropped objects, not to protect you in the event of a fall.
While construction helmets often come with a chin strap, people don't often wear those as the main concern is over dropped objects. Without a strap, a construction helmet will simply fall of the head should a person fall from a ladder.
I see plenty of cyclists riding around with a helmet balanced on their head without the strap done up. I would love to have an insight into their understanding of the physics involved in any incident in which they might need that helmet.
By accident data, shouldn't everyone wear a helmet whilst they take a shower?
I seem to remember reading once that there are six fatalities per annum attributable to head injuries received falling over while putting on trousers.
Helmets on before you sit up in bed is the only safe route.
Should wear them crossing the road too.