Most people find it hard to imagine what could possibly go wrong if they chose to ride their bicycles without helmets on. After all, bicycles are slow-moving things, and you’re in full control. Would you be surprised then to learn that a half million people each year show up at emergency rooms with bicycle-related injuries? And many of them actually have injuries to the head that could easily have been prevented if they had worn bicycle helmets.

Bicycle helmets aren’t just simple plastic hats that they sell at unreasonable prices. These protective devices do need a good bit of scientific design.

They make bicycle helmets in a number of different basic ways. Sport helmets are the cheapest kind – you’ll find them for $25, and they cover your entire head. Ventilation can be a major problem with the way most bicycle helmets are designed; and sport helmets tend to not be very satisfyingly made in this area. They try to deal with your ventilation needs with little holes punched all over the helmet.

Road helmets happen to be the most expensive kind – they sell at over $100, usually. These tend to be very lightweight and very well ventilated. Mountain bike helmets are nearly the same as road helmets, except that there usually heavier and chunkier. Helmets for toddlers and youths are built for those sizes, and they usually are much stronger than adult helmets – in view of the fact that young children have more delicate heads.

A woman’s helmet is usually adult sized, only smaller. And there is usually space for a ponytail.

It’s a good thing that the manufacturers make bicycle helmets in such a variety of sizes. Sizing is important because the loose helmet is often just as bad as going with no helmet at all. Nevertheless, most designers seem to neglect good design standards.

In any accident, your face and your forehead are likely to be in the line of fire before any other body part and yet, most helmets do nothing to protect your face. Try to look for a model that offers protruding surfaces on the front so that your face is the first thing to strike the ground.

Bike helmets aren’t things you are supposed to buy online. You need to make sure that they fit properly. You need to make sure that the ear holes line up with your ears, you need to make sure that it fits the shape of your head well and that there are no areas that come under pressure, and so on. In general, Bell and Giro are great brands to go with.