The CPSC staff concluded that helmet use by skiers and snowboarders could prevent or reduce the severity of 44 percent of head injuries to adults, and 53 percent of head injuries to children under the age of 15. The proportion of skiing and snowboarding head injuries is higher in children than in any other age group. The study, conducted as part of CPSC's ongoing work to reduce head injuries in a variety of sports and activities, found that there were 17,500 head injuries associated with skiing and snowboarding in 1997. Dr. Paul Auerbach, an authority on emergency medicine, concurs. The single most important piece of equipment for a snowboarder is his or her helmet.
Personal safety comes first.
When you fall hard on a snowboard, there isn't enough time to reach out and brace for the impact. I've seen too many broken noses and teeth, concussions, and far more severe head injuries that would have been prevented by properly fitted helmets. During the same period, snowboarding injuries nearly tripled and the number of head injuries from snowboarding increased five-fold, the CPSC study found. The injuries have dropped, in part, because of improvements in ski equipment, such as redesigned bindings, which have reduced injuries to the legs. Head injuries were essentially unchanged at 13,600 in 1993 and 12,700 in 1997.