The death of Natasha Richardson last night from a skiing accident hit a nerve in me.  The cause of death is “epidural hematoma due to blunt impact to the head”, after she ran into a tree on the slopes.

I live in Colorado, and my kids are both avid snowboarders.  Every winter the news is full of stories of accidents and deaths on our Colorado ski slopes.

It’s college spring break here this week and our own daughter Jessica was herself in Keystone snowboarding on Monday.  Every time she goes I have an  uneasy feeling, because I know firsthand how wild some of the snowboarders can be and how easy it is to lose control.  I never rest until she gets home.

I’ve attempted many many times to tell my kids how important it is for them to wear helmets, but it’s just not the cool thing to do and they resist my suggestions.  It’s not just something I preach, I actually do it.  When we ourselves go skiing, which is not so much these days, I do wear a helmet.  There have just been too many times when I’ve had too many close calls, and I’ve seen what can happen.

Just this week (prior to the news of Natasha), I had submitted an article to Ezine Articles on the 7 Must Know Safety Tips of Pedal Toys For Parents.  Number 5 on that list was to make kids wear helmets when they’re riding any type of pedal toy.  (the article is still in review and has not yet been published but when it is you’ll be able to read it right here—-> down below on the bottom).

If we as parents and adults are going to preach to our kids the importance of wearing helmets when they’re participating in activities such as bicycling or skiing, then it is our job as parents to practice what we preach and wear helmets ourselves while enjoying these types of activities.

Dr. Stewart Levy, a Denver-based neurosurgeon helpted to launch a helmet-loaner program in Colorado called “It Ain’t Brain Surgery.” His studies have found that helmets can reduce the risk of brain injury by 75%.   Unfortunately I’ve had some personal experience with Dr. Levy.  He saw my mother when she was diagnosed with brain cancer 3 years ago.

Here’s what Dr. Levy has to say about helmets: “It’s important for anyone to use a helmet when they ski or snowboard — not just kids,” he says. “It’s more devastating to a family when a parent gets a brain injury, because the parent is the breadwinner or caretaker or both, it’s very disturbing to see families on the slopes with their kids in helmets but Mom and Dad aren’t wearing them. It’s upsetting, disturbing and hypocritical as well.”

It’s very likely that Natasha Richardson could have walked away from her ski accident unharmed if she had been wearing a helmet.