Parents and children should take the appropriate safety precautions when riding bicycles and scooters or using in-line skates and skateboards.
“People don’t think much about putting on a seatbelt when getting into a car. It’s just a good habit,” she Shawna DiFilippo, Program Coordinator at Safe Kids Canada. “Wearing a helmet and other protective gear should become a habit, because it will help keep children participating in wheeled activities.”
Head injures are the leading cause of serious injury and death to children on wheels, says DiFilippo. Cyclists under 18 are required by law to wear an approved bicycle helmet when riding a bike on a roadway or sidewalk in Ontario.
It's affordable to buy protective gear, and Safe Kids Canada recommends all children wear a helmet and protective gear when participating in all wheeled activities.
Here are some tips from Safe Kids Canada on choosing a helmet for your child.
Choosing a helmet
- When choosing a helmet, make sure it has a sticker to say that it meets safety standards such as CSA, CPSC, Snell or ASTM.
- Skateboard riders need a special skateboarding helmet that protects the back of the head.
- Try the helmet on your child’s head before you buy it. Make sure it is comfortable and not too big.
- Replace a helmet when it is past 5 years old. The plastics dry out and the helmet becomes unsafe to use.
- Safe Kids Canada does not recommend using second-hand helmets.
Fitting a helmet onto your child
- Have your child put on the helmet.
- Helmets are sold with foam pads to help the helmet fit better. The pads attach to the inside of the helmet. Try different pads until the helmet fits firmly on your child’s head.
- The helmet should cover the top of the forehead and should rest about 2 fingers’ width above the eyebrows.
- Adjust the side straps so that they fit snugly around your child’s ears in a “V” shape. The buckles on the side strap should fit right under the ear.
- Buckle the chin strap. Tighten it until you can only fit one finger between the strap and your child’s chin.
- Remember to take off anything that could change the way a helmet fits. (e.g., baseball caps, big hair clips, and headphones.)
Does the helmet fit your child correctly?
- Have your child shake her head from side to side and from front to back. The helmet should not move around when she shakes her head.
- Make sure the helmet is level on your child’s head.
- Teach your child to check the helmet fit every time.
