Safety campaigners blast brain surgeon over bike claims.
A top neurosurgeon has been blasted for claiming that cyclists who wear helmets are wasting their time.
Henry Marsh, who works at St George’s Hospital in London and is an amateur cyclist, said helmets were “too flimsy” to offer much protection.
Yesterday, safety campaigners branded the comments as “irresponsible”.
Mr Marsh said: “I ride a bike and never wear a helmet. In the countries where bike helmets are compulsory there has been no reduction in bike injuries whatsoever.
“I see lots of people in bike accidents and these flimsy little helmets don’t help.”
He added: “I have been cycling for 40 years and have only been knocked off once. I wear a cowboy hat and cowboy boots I look completely mad.”
But critics hit out at his comments saying they risked endangering cyclists.
Angela Lee, of the Bicycle Helmet Initiative, said: “He has got a responsibility.
“If somebody stops wearing a helmet because of what he says then he needs to take responsibility for the consequences.
“It would be a travesty if somebody takes their helmet off because of this.
“It is such a negligent thing to say for a person in that position. Helmets have a place in cycling. The evidence is robust that helmets are effective.”
Kevin Clinton, head of road safety at the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents, said helmets are an important part of cycle safety.
He said: “RoSPA recommends that cyclists wear a cycle helmet because they reduce the risk of receiving major head or brain injuries in an accident.
“They are especially effective for children and in accidents which do not involve a collision with a motor vehicle.”
The row re-ignites a long-standing and fierce debate on the effectiveness of cycling helmets, which are not compulsory in the UK.
Some countries that have made them compulsory have seen cycling injuries drop dramatically.
But those same countries also saw a huge fall in the number of people cycling it is believed the helmet laws put them off.
In 2006, a study by Jeff Brewster from the University of Bath found that drivers passed closer to cyclists wearing a helmet when overtaking than they did those without them.
It was believed that drivers subconsciously saw them as less vulnerable and drove closer.
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