"It changed my life forever": Helmets urged for sledding to prevent traumatic brain injuries

MINNEAPOLIS – With plenty of snow on the ground and mild temps, it's ideal weather for sledding. But most of us are doing it the wrong way – and it could cost us and our kids big time.

Dr. Matt Severson works at Gillette Children's Hospital.

"We do see these injuries come through our doors, we see kids at Gillette Children's that have had injuries to their head," Severson said.

Dr. Severson rehabs injured kids. He says there are 20,000 sledding emergencies a year.

"We're talking about things like fractures to the skull, brain injuries. Sometimes that means maybe there's a brain bleed," he said. "Stuff that can alter the trajectory of a kid's life."

Yes it can. Just ask Dayvin Lee's mom, Lauri Putman. Her son's life was altered a few years ago on a sledding field trip in St. Paul.

"Dayvin bumped heads with another student, and the other student got a goose bump, and Dayvin wasn't so lucky," Lauri said.

Dayvin is now 16.  

"I remember going down the hill with my friend, and the next thing I remembered was I was just like on the ground, everything was green and I threw up," Dayvin said. "And there was like a bunch of people rushing at me, and someone said, 'Call 911.'"

A pre-surgery scan shows the crack to Dayvin's skull. He was treated at Gillette's.

"It was terrifying," Lauri said. "Definitely very traumatic for our family."

That's why Dr. Severson is making a hard push for kids to wear helmets. He says not bike helmets, because the ridges can catch. Instead, he suggests a smooth snow or ski helmet.

"They're built with this ear warmth, and then some other warmth built into the helmet, so it replaces the hat and protects the head," he said.

Dr. Severson says three more things to remember:

* Never wear a hat under a helmet

* Make sure it fits so tight that it doesn't move

* If the helmet has taken a hit, toss it out and get a new one

Dayvin, who is mostly healed but still pained by memories, has advice for kids.

"I think that they should definitely wear the helmet, because it changed my life forever," Dayvin said.

We know this is Minnesota, and many of you grew up sledding and never wore helmets. But Dr. Severson says we also used to not wear seatbelts, and research shows it's time to start wearing helmets while sledding.