What is MIPS when it comes to kids bike helmets?


Safety is at the top of the agenda of everything we do at Little Rider Co, and even more so when looking for other biking products for our little riders. Probably one of the most important investments you can make in your child’s cycling is the helmet. When searching for kids bike helmets it’s important to ensure it has the relevant safety standards and ratings for your country. Without this, it means you could be buying products that could fail and not provide the expected result during an impact. We are protecting our little riders here, so no cutting corners! You can maximise the safety, quality and performance of your next lid purchase by ensuring it has ‘MIPS’ technology.

What does ‘MIPS’ stand for?

MIPS stands for Multi-Directional Impact Protection System.

But what exactly is ‘MIPS’?

The MIPS system is designed to add protection against the rotational motion (or kinematics) transmitted to the brain from angled impacts to the head. The rotational motion is a combination of rotational energy (angular velocity) and rotational forces from angular acceleration that both affect the brain and increases the risk for minor and severe brain injuries. MIPS’ added protection system has been proven to reduce the rotational motion when implemented in a helmet by absorbing and redirecting energies and forces otherwise transmitted to the brain.

What is rotational motion and why is it dangerous for Little Riders?

Rotational motion, in these cases, is the result of an angled impact to the head. A quick, sudden, abrupt stop, will cause the brain to move or stretch. This happens mainly due to the brain’s suspension in the cerebrospinal fluid and because the brain itself has shear properties similar to water.

It is known that the human head is more sensitive to rotational motion than linear motion.

From an engineering perspective, rotational motion is a combination of rotational energy (angular velocity) and rotational forces (angular acceleration) that both affect the brain and increase the risk for minor and severe brain injuries. The reason that the brain is more sensitive to rotational motion is that the brain is very much like water or a gel when it comes to its shear properties. The brain, like water, is also incompressible. Therefore, a linear motion will not affect the brain as much as a rotational motion.

How do I know if a helmet I am looking at for my child has MIPS?

That’s easy, look for the ‘MIPS’ logo on the box of the helmet. MIPS solutions also complies with ROHS and SVHC safety standards so you know the helmet ticks all the boxes.

What bike brands utilise the ‘MIPS’ system in some of their kids helmets?

So, do you recommend that I buy a kids helmet with ‘MIPS’?

Yes, Absolutely!  It’s a no brainer! If safety is at the top of your agenda when it comes to your child’s cycling (which it should) then it’s the first thing you should ask when evaluating new lids.

Want to read more about ‘MIP’s and the benefit to your little riders?

Checkout the MIPS website. Thanks to the MIPS team for creating such great technology for keeping our kids safer! CLICK HERE