| This argument gets rehashed nearly every time cycling and helmets are brought up. Usually be people talking past each other. Here are some important conclusions: 1) Cycling as a commuter is quite safe, with or without a helmet. 2) Cycling is safer with a helmet. 3) If you found yourself in some binary where your only options were "cycle without a helmet" or "don't cycle at all", the health benefits of "cycle without a helmet" likely outweigh the risk of serious injury due to not wearing a helmet. 4) Because of #3 and other factors, helmet laws for adults aren't generally a net positive. 5) BUT - it's a good idea to wear a helmet whenver you can, and even the Dutch (fore example) would be better off if they kept their usage of cycling high, but culturally embraced wearing helmets as well. 6) Things are very different in higher-risk forms of cycling like BMX, road racing and MTB, where crashes are much more frequent and higher impact, and you'd be an idiot to not wear a helmet. |