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(July 13, 2012)

Heads in Helmets


A man wears a helmet while riding a motorcycle.
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From the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, I’m Nicholas Garlow with HHS HealthBeat.

Wearing a helmet can save your life on a motorcycle. In fact, in 2010, h elmets saved over 1,500 riders’ lives, but about 700 more lives could have been saved if all riders had worn helmets.

Rebecca Naumann is at the National Center for Injury Prevention and Control at the CDC.

 “We’ve seen that helmets reduce the likelihood of death in a motorcycle crash by about 37 percent.”

Full-face helmets offer the best protection for your head, face, eyes – and smile.

“CDC encourages that every motorcycle rider wear a helmet on every trip. We also encourage that motorcycle riders never ride after drinking.”

In 2010, motorcyclists who wore helmets prevented so much head injury that the total savings to the country amounted to $3 billion.

Learn more at healthfinder.gov.

HHS HealthBeat is a production of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. I’m Nicholas Garlow.

Last revised: July 13, 2012