Georgia is one of 19 states that has an explicit motorcycle helmet law for all riders, regardless of age or insurance status. This means that every time you get on your bike, you have to strap that helmet down on your chin without fail, or risk civil penalty. However, many riders believe that a helmet takes the fun out of riding: they want to feel the wind through their hair, not the weight of a helmet. So a logical question to ask is: do helmets actually work? According to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, the answer is yes: wearing a helmet can decrease the risk of death by up to 42%.
Of course, the type of helmet that you choose matters a lot. No matter what style of helmet you prefer (full-face, half-face, open-face), make sure that the helmet you choose is DOT-approved: otherwise it is known as a “novelty helmet” and studies have show that drivers wearing novelty helmets are twice as likely to die in crashes as compared to those wearing DOT-approved full-face helmets.
A common argument lodged against helmets is that there’s a chance that they will increase potential neck injury risk and also reduce hearing and peripheral vision. However, any study done regarding helmets and neck injuries have refuted this claim, making it baseless. Plus, riders are able to adequately compensate for the slight lack of peripheral vision by turning their head to make turns. Any sound that is loud enough to be heard over the engine of a motorcycle is loud enough to be heard inside a helmet.
Wearing a helmet is not just the law: it makes logical sense according to the evidence.