The next time some kid goes tearing by you on the sidewalk, he’ll probably be on a scooter. Since taking off in the United States last spring, the six-pound foot-propelled vehicles have become the must-have toy. Americans are expected to spend $200 million buying more than 2 million of them in 2000. But the fold-up aluminum vehicles are not as harmless as they look. The Consumer Product Safety Commission reports that scooter injuries have nearly doubled each month since May; in August alone, 4,000 injuries required emergency-room visits. Twenty-nine percent of these were fractures and dislocations, most to the arm or hand. The rest included lacerations (28 percent), bruises and abrasions (17 percent) and strains and sprains (15 percent). So far no deaths have been connected to scooters, but experts are afraid that mortal injury is only a matter of time. The CPSC estimates that kids could have prevented or reduced the severity of 63 percent of the 9,400 scooter-related injuries so far this year with protective gear. So don’t leave home without a helmet, sturdy shoes, wrist guards and knee and elbow pads.
Helmets are the top priority. With- out them, kids–whose disproportionately large heads and small bodies make them more likely to topple forward when they lose their balance–can wind up with brain injuries. Head traumas can cause anything from mild speech problems to severe cognitive impairment and death. “The brain isn’t something that can repair itself once the damage is significant enough,” says Gary Smith, a member of the American Academy of Pediatrics committee on injury prevention. About 29 percent of the injuries so far this year were to the head and face. Children can also puncture their organs if they fall forward on the handlebars.
Not surprisingly, given these safety concerns, communities are beginning to crack down on scootermania. Many schools have banned scooters from their premises. The Milton, Wash., city council last week passed an ordinance requiring scooter users to wear helmets. And while some municipalities have banned motorized scooters, it’s still early in the trend for any widespread regulation. Some cities, like Chicago, already have laws on the books banning such foot-powered conveyances on the street–which is just as well, according to the experts. Kids are obviously in much greater danger in traffic or around parked cars: scooters are so low to the ground, drivers may have trouble seeing them.
Besides kids, scooters have plenty of champions. “I would much rather see kids playing safely with equipment like this than sitting around the TV set,” says pediatrician Howard Spivak, chief of the division of general pediatrics and adolescent medicine at New England Medical Center. “Nobody’s interested in taking away fun activities; the issue is promoting safe behaviors.” Scooters provide some cardiovascular exercise–though pushing off with a foot to ride a scooter isn’t as vigorous as pedaling a bike. They’re psychologically healthy, too. “Any kind of transportation, whether it’s a bicycle, a scooter or Rollerblades, enhances the child’s sense of freedom and independence, and that’s positive,’’ says David Fassler, chair of the American Psychiatric Association’s council on children, adolescents and their families. Still, the CPSC recommends close supervision for kids under 8.
No matter what their age, some kids are already trading in their scooters for more advanced models. The new scooters are a far cry from the Depression-era models made from wooden crates and old wheels. Sharper Image, which introduced the current scooter to the United States, now sells models such as the Xtreme ($129.95), with shock absorbers, and the Xootr street scooter ($389.95), with bikelike handlebar brakes. Like the original Razor scooter, these editions officially zip along at 15 to 17 mph–but can easily go much faster on steep slopes. Charles Fremolaro of Chappaqua, N.Y., gave in to the pleas of his daughter, Mia, 10, and bought her a scooter–only to see her arm and knee wind up looking like “raw meat” after she jumped off her zooming vehicle. “If you pick up any speed, you’re in trouble,” says Fremolaro. “Parents all buy them without really thinking about the consequences.” He now insists his daughter not leave their driveway without an adult–or proper armor.
