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
@coolandnormal @passwordsarehard4 @quixoticgeek
Actually not, because that framing assumes that helmet laws are actually effective—which is not even remotely settled.
The studies that I know of that support helmet laws almost invariably focus on helmets preventing *head injuries*, not helmets preventing *deaths*. But that does not mean that they are an effective intervention, because a) many head injuries are not deadly, and b) head injuries are not necessarily the most common cause of death, or even typical, in traffic collisions.
In fact, there is some evidence that helmet laws increase traffic deaths (due to reduced safety in numbers, risk compensation, or dehumanization effects)
@mrosin you've shown a lot of patience!
@passwordsarehard4 you can't make up your own science based on what feels nice, that's not how science works.
Quixoticgeek
Passwordsarehard4
Ho Ho Ho Like The Slur
Maximilian Rosin