"""""some guy"" mentions China and the Netherlands as two places where people don't use helmets and suggests that there are few injuries there. Where is the evidence to support that? China has a huge population of cyclists and only recently have cars been gaining but how does he know how many cyclists are injured or killed. Does he have statistics from the Chinese government? In the Netherlands there is a large use of bicycles but there are many cycling paths that are physically separated from auto traffic. Does he have statistics from the Netherlands? I have cycled a lot in Japan where many people cycle and the roads are more crowded than here. There are some cycling paths that are separate but I would be surprised if there were few cycling injuries there.""
You ask me for evidence, when in fact since you are positing that helmets can or should make a big difference in reducing serious injuries, it should be you who is providing the evidence. Do you have any such evidence?
That's what should disturb you -- recognition that you are speaking as if you know something when you don't. If I've disturbed you in that manner, that's a good thing and you should thank me for it -- for pushing you to be a critical thinker.
Cycling not especially dangerous. In NYC about 120,000 people a day ride a bike. In the course of a year, between 10 and 15 people die while cycling. Surely there are much larger numbers of serious injuries (not just to the head, but to other parts of the body too) but I don't know of any evidence that says cycling is particularly dangerous compared to other activities. If you do, let's hear them. And BTW, piling up random anecdores is not evidence. Let's see some stats -- especially in comparison to other common activities such as walking or travelling in a car. I've given one data point -- 10 to 15 deaths annually with 120,000 people doing the activity per day. What info do you have?
One other thing. A big problem I have with the crazy pro-helmet people is that too often helmets are the focus of cycling ""safety."" Rather than saying, how can we as cyclists be safer, or how can we as a society make cycling safer, too much focus is placed on protecting 2/3 of the head (and not very effectively, as you suggest). The post that started this whole discussion is an example of that."