QuixoticgeekFeb 5

So my toot about helmet laws increasing heart disease has got a few replies by people wondering wtf. The way it works is that mandatory helmet laws reduce cycling, fewer people cycling results in an increase in obesity related illnesses like heart disease and diabetes.

One of, if not rhe best, things that a government can do to improve health at a population level is increasing active travel (walking and cycling).

1/n

https://theconversation.com/ditching-bike-helmets-laws-better-for-health-42

Ditching bike helmets laws better for health

With epidemics of diabetes and obesity threatening to bankrupt state health budgets, governments need to broaden their strategies to encourage physical activity. Allowing cyclists to ride without a helmet…

The Conversation
Show threadbovazFeb 5
@quixoticgeek I see your point.
In Italy we're going weird: helmets are mandatory for kids (I think the cutoff age is 12).
BUT, helmets are mandatory on electric scooters, because of a weird campaign that swept through our media a while ago and that made them sounds like dangerous traps for everyone. Similarly, a new law will require registration plates and insurance for electric scooters but not for bikes.
Show threadQuixoticgeek
@bovaz not requiring number plates for bikes is a good thing. The helmets for kids thing can be extra harmful, as very young children don't have the strength in their neck to cope with the extra weight of a helmet, places like Denmark require helmets for children even when they are passengers on the bike, like in a bakfiets.
Feb 5 at 10:38amWeb
Show threadbovazFeb 5
@quixoticgeek there are exceptions for bikes. Like, if it's an electric bike with a speed rating over 45km/h (or 50?), then you require insurance, because it starts being being considered similarly to an electric motorcycle.
As you say in the thread, the thing that would make bicycles safer would be separate cycling lanes, and fewer cars on the roads.