Summary
Which cycle helmets give you the best protection?
I’m a big fan of cycling and so when listener Migue got in touch wanting to know what cycle helmet he should buy next, I was really keen to investigate.
Migue wanted to know what factors make a cycle helmet the most effective when it comes to protecting your head: the shape, the material, the fit? He’s seen all sorts of neat tech, including collapsible helmets and ones that fit around your neck and act like airbags! To find out more I speak to an expert at one of the world’s leading helmet testing labs in Virginia, USA.
And in researching this episode I also discovered there is a hotly-contested debate about whether cycle helmets should be the focus at all when it comes to safety. Some - including the organisation Cycling UK and the charity Sustrans - argue that introducing tougher rules around helmets would mean far more lives lost through physical inactivity than would be saved in protecting from collisions, which are rare. That’s a view shared by Dr Ian Walker from Swansea University, who also features in this episode.
Once again this series we’re testing and investigating your suggested wonder-products, so if you’ve seen an ad, trend or fad, and wonder if there’s any evidence to back up a claim, drop us an email to sliced.bread@bbc.co.uk or you can send us a voice note to our WhatsApp number: 07543 306807
PRESENTER: Greg Foot
PRODUCER: Simon Hoban “
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Before this BBC podcast kicks off, I'd like to tell you about some others you might enjoy. |
| 0:05.1 | My name's Will Wilkin and I Commission Music Podcast for the BBC. |
| 0:08.7 | It's a really cool job, but every day we get to tell the incredible stories behind songs, |
| 0:13.5 | moments and movements, stories of struggle and success, rises and falls, the funny, the ridiculous. |
| 0:19.1 | And the BBC's position, at the heart of British music |
| 0:21.7 | means we can tell those stories like no one else. |
| 0:24.5 | We were, are and always will be right there at the centre of the narrative. |
| 0:28.6 | So whether you want an insightful take on music right now |
| 0:31.3 | or a nostalgic deep dive into some of the most famous and infamous moments in music, |
| 0:36.1 | check out the music podcasts on BBC Sounds. |
| 0:40.0 | BBC Sounds, music radio podcasts. Hello, I'm Greg Foote and welcome to the show that |
| 0:48.1 | investigates your suggested wonder products to find out if they are indeed the best thing since |
| 0:53.2 | sliced bread or marketing BS. |
| 0:55.9 | Over the past few years, I've looked into over 60 wonder products promising to make you happier, |
| 1:01.0 | healthier or greener. Sometimes you've spotted them making specific claims from collagen supplements |
| 1:06.9 | to kombucha, caffeine shampoo to CBD oil. Sometimes though, you've asked me to investigate |
| 1:12.7 | bigger topics, where the benefits are more baked in to stick with the slice bread metaphor, |
| 1:18.2 | the likes of sunscreen or carbon offsetting or electric cars. And this week's topic feels like |
| 1:24.5 | one of those. Over to listener Miege Moyer to introduce it. |
| 1:29.8 | Hello Greg. I'm a cyclist in London and I'm looking to buy a new helmet. There are so many |
| 1:35.3 | different options that I don't really know what to look for. Is it the shape that's important |
| 1:40.0 | or the materials that it's made of? I've seen ones that are around full head, flat fackable, |
... |
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