Over half of primary school children in a new study have said they never wear protective helmets while cycling.

Research from NUI Maynooth and TCD indicates that helmet-wearing is not a widespread practice and children are less likely to wear a cycle helmet as they get older.

The researchers studied 270 primary school children aged 8-13 attending schools in disadvantaged areas in Dublin.

More than one-in five reported always wearing a cycle helmet, while 28% said they did so only some of the time. However, just over one in two of the children in the study said they never used protective headgear when cycling.

The researchers found that as children get older they are less likely to wear a helmet, with two out of three 12-13 year-olds compared to 38% of 8-9 year-olds reporting never using cycle helmets.

They also found that among the same children studied, 93% said they always wore seatbelts when in cars.

The authors say the findings of the study add further to the debate around the mandatory introduction of protective headgear for cyclists. At present, the wearing of cycle helmets is not legally enforced in Ireland.

The research is published in the Irish Medical Journal.