Skateboarding started being an official Olympic sport in 2020, and more people are becoming interested in this exciting sport. In 2017, over 90,000 people were treated in hospital emergency rooms after skateboarding related injury. Over 45,000 of those injuries came from ages 15 to 24.

The brunt of the damage usually happens to your wrists. Injury’s such as sprains or fractures, “swellbows,” or swollen elbows, also are common. To avoid a serious injury, such as a broken nose or jawbone, concussion and other head injury, it is imperative to follow the safety rules to minimize your risk

Protecting Children and Adults from Bicycle Injuries

Hear are some suggestions for preventing bicycle injuries:

• A bicycle that is to large can not be controled. You should be able to straddle the bike and stand with both feet flat on the ground.
• Younger children should ride a bicycle with training wheels.
• You must be able to stop the bike by using the brakes.
• Proper hand signals for left turns, right turns, and stopping should be learned. Make certain you understand and observe all traffic signals and signs. Children who aren’t yet coordinated enough to use hand signals and still maintain control of their bike should not ride in the street.
• Children should ride on sidewalks until they are at least 13 years of age.
• Look both ways, before riding into traffic from a sidewalk, driveway, or parking lot.
• When riding on the street, children should ride in a straight line near the curb, and be alert for car doors opening into traffic lanes. Both children and adults should ride against traffic.
• Children should not ride a bike as it gets dark or at night as this is when most  accidents occur. If a child is still outside when it turns dark, the bicycle light must be turned on and the child should be wearing light or reflective clothing.
• Bikes should have safety reflectors attached. All bikes should have reflectors on the front, rear, and wheel spokes.

In-line Skates

The following recommendations are from the National Safety Council (NSC) and the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission:

• Protective gear should always be worn, such as elbow and kneepads, gloves, helmets, and wrist guards.
• Use durable skates with proper ankle support.
• Warm up your muscles before skating by skating slowly for 5 minutes or more.
• Skate with knees slightly bent to maintain balance.
• Practice stopping properly without losing balance.
• Always skate on the right side of sidewalks and other paths.
• Pass on the left and warn others that you are passing.
• Don’t skate in the street, especially where there is a lot of traffic.
• Look for and avoid uneven surfaces. Inspect the ground below you.
• Check your skates regularly for wear and tear. Make sure the wheels are tightened.
• Obey all legal traffic rules.

Skateboards

Skateboards are very popular among children of all ages. Skateboards should never be used on surface streets. Even experienced skateboarders will fall, so learning how to fall safely can help reduce the risk of injuries. The following are recommendations from the NSC regarding how to fall correctly:

• When losing your balance, crouch down on the skateboard so you have a shorter distance to fall.
• Try to land on fleshy parts of your body when falling.
• Try to roll as you fall, which prevents your arms from absorbing all the force.
• Try to relax, rather than remaining stiff when falling.
• Shake yourself off and get back up.

Other safety precautions to take when skateboarding include the following:

• Always use protective gear, such as helmets, padding for wrists, elbows and knees, and closed-toe and slip-resistant shoes.
• Check your the skateboard occasionally for wear and tear.
• Only allow one person per skateboard.
• Don’t hang onto bicycles, cars, or other vehicles while skateboarding.
• Carefully practice tricks in designated skateboarding areas.
• Don’t skateboard in the street.

Scooters

Although scooters have been around since the mid century, the newer scooters are usually made of lightweight aluminum, weighing less than 12 pounds. They are quickly risen in popularity and are the cause of more emergency room visits. Health officials have seen a dramatic increase in scooter-related accidents and injuries. Most of the injuries happen to kids  under the age of 15. Some of the more common injuries are fractures or dislocations to the arm or hand, followed by cuts, bruises, strains, and sprains. Almost half of all injuries tend to happen to the arm or hand, and about one-fourth are to the head and another fourth to the leg or foot. Deaths directly related to scooter accidents have also happened.

The CDC has recommended the same precautions for scooters as for bicycling and in-line skating. Many injuries can be prevented or reduced in severity if protective equipment is worn. Helmets have the best chance of decreasing head injuries and wearing a helmet is the law in most states, elbow pads can prevent over 80 percent of elbow injuries, and knee pads can prevent over 30 percent of knee injuries. Although wrist guards are effective in preventing injuries among in-line skaters, the protection they provide against injury for scooter riders is unknown, as wrist guards may make it hard to grip the scooter handle and steer it.

Based on the research of injury prevention effectiveness for other related activities, the following recommendations may help to prevent scooter-related injuries:

• Wear an approved helmet that meets safety standards.
• Use knee and elbow pads.
• Ride scooters on smooth, paved roads without traffic. Don’t ride on streets and surfaces with water, sand, gravel, or dirt.
• Don’t ride scooters at night.

Young children should not use scooters without close supervision.