The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
As the warm weather finally arrives, it's time to dust off our bikes, skateboards and rollerblades. The other item that should go hand in hand with all of those wheeled modes of transportation is a properly fitted helmet. Every year in Manitoba, dozens of children are evaluated and treated for head injuries after falling from bicycles and skateboards. Some of these injuries are serious enough to require admission to hospital and emergency brain surgery to treat skull fractures or brain hemorrhages. Unfortunately many of these children are never the same after their injuries Ñ injuries that would have been entirely preventable had they been wearing a properly fitted helmet. Manitoba is one of the few remaining provinces without helmet legislation requiring mandatory bicycle helmet use. Studies have shown that provinces with helmet legislation have lower rates of serious head injuries in cyclists. About 80% of cyclists in Ontario (a province with helmet legislation) wear helmets whereas only about 25% of cyclists do in Manitoba! Before your children head out on their bikes, blades or boards this Spring, make sure they are wearing a helmet. As parents, let's set a safe example by wearing one too! Have a safe and fun summer Ñ don't ruin it by having to meet me!
