Citation

DiGuiseppi CG, Rivara FP, Koepsell TD. Am. J. Dis. Child. (1960) 1990; 144(1): 83-86.

Affiliation

Children's National Medical Center, George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences, Washington, DC.

Copyright

(Copyright © 1990, American Medical Association)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

2294724

Abstract

To identify attitudes toward bicycle helmet ownership and use, questionnaires were sent to parents of 2,178 third-graders; 1,057 (48.5%) returned valid responses. Of 931 children who had bicycles, 24% owned helmets, but only 56% of children who owned helmets wore them. Helmet ownership, but not use, was associated with higher parental education. Fifty-one percent of 704 parents of bicycle owners who had not purchased helmets said they had never thought of it, 29% thought helmets were too costly, and 20% felt their children would not wear them. Of 792 children who did not wear helmets, 25% said they did not wear them because their friends did not; 22% never thought about wearing helmets; and 16% found them uncomfortable. Efforts to increase the wearing of helmets should address helmet design, awareness, peer pressure, and cost.