Over the years, a lot of attention has been devoted to improving the safety standards of both pedestrians and cyclists. Traffic rules have been suitably modified and offenders are being dealt with strictly. Unfortunately, the number of road accidents has not shown a sharp decline. Instead it has actually gone up in most countries and while reasons such as increased number of vehicles on roads and reckless behaviour on the part of both pedestrians as well as cyclists have been advanced, it has to be said that in many cases, inappropriate safety gear or even the lack of it has been responsible for many an accident. This is where the importance of cycle helmets stands out. If one were to compile statistics of accidents where the person has been saved from a dreadful head injury or even death due to the presence of a helmet, then that figure would surely be a high one.

Many cyclists did not take to wearing these protective helmets immediately. There were many public awareness campaigns that had to be carried out to impress upon people the benefits of wearing a helmet. The main reason was that cyclists who were used to enjoying the cool breeze on their faces were certainly in no mood to now suddenly experience a feeling that many described as claustrophobic. To be fair to them, the helmets manufactured earlier were indeed bulky and to some extent did present problems in terms of peripheral vision, ventilation and so on. The unfortunate spinoff was that by the time people actually started sporting these cycle helmets seriously and looked at them from the perspective of how useful they could be to prevent head concussions and other fatal injuries, some more lives had been snuffed out. Many countries even had to put in strict legislation in the form of penalties to those who did not wear the helmet and it was a combination of public awareness drive and fear of penalties that finally did the trick.

Cycle helmet manufacturers also warmed up to the task of making helmets that were more acceptable and convenient. They took feedback from the public and started coming out with designs that had essential attributes like a face-shield that could resist scratches, provision for adequate ventilation, fog prevention, great artwork, lightweight and so on. Those who could meet the above attributes and more came out as winners in consumer studies that were conducted on which helmets were preferred. That helped them sell a lot more than they used to and motivated them to keep up the high standards.

From being something of inconvenience and discomfort, the cycle helmets soon became objects through which you could make a style statement. Better technology, racy designs and innovative artwork have made them acceptable to the public and accident statistics now definitely show improved figures in terms of a fall in head injuries and people generally surviving a mishap just because they had the helmet on.