East Tennessee Children's Hospital

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE For more information, contact:
Janya Marshall (865) 541-8276

THE IMPORTANCE OF BICYCLE SAFETY:
SOME SIMPLE TIPS EVERYONE SHOULD KNOW

With school out and summer weather encouraging children to play outside, bicycles become a preferred daily transportation mode for children around neighborhood streets. While this activity provides endless hours of enjoyment and great exercise for children, many people may not understand some of the potential dangers that bicycles pose. Without proper instruction and safety precautions, bicycle riders may be involved in serious, cycling accidents.

May is National Bike Safety Month and it provides an opportunity for local communities to promote bicycling as an environmentally-friendly transportation, personal wellness exercise vehicle, and fun recreational activity.

According to the Centers for Disease control and Prevention, an estimated 140,000 children were injured badly enough to need emergency department care as a result of bicycle accidents and head injury in the United States in 1999. In addition, 750 bicyclists that year were killed in accidents; more than one-quarter were riders younger than 16 years old and 95% were not wearing helmets. In the event of an accident, wearing a bike helmet reduces the risk of serious head injuries by 85%, but unfortunately, estimates on helmet usage suggest that only 25% of children ages 5-14 wear a helmet when riding a bicycle. If every bicycle rider wore a helmet, that action alone would prevent an estimated 150 deaths and another 100,000 nonfatal head injuries each year.

"The most common serious injury we see from bicycle accidents is head injury," said Dr. John Williams, Emergency Medical Physician at Children's Hospital. "And helmet use can prevent almost all of this from happening. And parents need to set the example. No matter where the child is riding - whether in the yard or in the street-they need a helmet on."

Children's Hospital offers the following tips to help children be safer bicycle riders.

ALWAYS WEAR A HELMET. Think of a bicycle helmet as a necessity, not an accessory. And remember, in the state of Tennessee, it is a law that all children under the age of 16 must wear a helmet while riding a bike.

Observe all traffic laws and signals, and ride near a curb in the same direction of traffic.

Stop and look both directions before entering a street.

Use correct hand signals.

Yield to the right-of-way to pedestrians.

Ensure that your bike is the appropriate size, has good working brakes and undergoes regular maintenance work.

When riding at night, put reflective tape on clothing or wear reflective vests or jackets.

Avoid riding in wet weather, and walk bikes across intersections.

Never ride double.

Adults can be great role models by following the above tips for themselves and teaching all the children in their lives to follow these same guidelines. For more information on bicycle safety, visit the Centers for Disease control and Prevention Web site at www.cdc.gov, call the Community Relations Department at (865) 541-8165.

East Tennessee Children's Hospital is a private, independent, not-for-profit pediatric medical center which has served the East Tennessee region for over 65 years and is certified by the state of Tennessee as a Comprehensive Regional Pediatric Center.

Editor's Note: Children's Hospital's Healthy Kids program is a community education initiative of the Community Relations Department. The program serves as an education resource for parents by offering classes, literature and other opportunities for learning how to improve the health and well being of children. For more information or to sign up for classes, call the Healthy Kids Hotline at (865) 541-8262.

We invite your comments and questions. Please complete our comment form or visit our Phone Numbers page for departmental telephone listings.

Revised 9-19-04