As everyone says, there is very little independent evidence either way for or against neck braces, so we all make our own decisions.
My rational for my own child is as follows:
Most neck injuries are whiplash injuries caused by the mass of the head moving suddenly in an accident. Helmets add even more mass, hence the cms standard for junior karters (lighter helmets) Any kind of neck brace, foam, Valhalla etc. if it works properly with the helmet will reduce velocity/slow down sudden movements in any accident. Too many people buy a neck brace with no consideration to their helmet, for my child a bell helmet didn’t work with the Valhalla (because the lower chin lifted the helmet) but an Arai did. On his first helmet I found a junior foam neck brace too thick, again lifting the helmet, so I took the foam out and cut it down. Many people would be scared to do that thinking the manufacturer must of known best but I’d argue, I knew what it needed to do and in its standard form it was creating not solving the problem.
Finally watch any film about stunt men preparing for a car stunt and almost all of them wear a neck brace, so with or without endorsement, for my child, I’ll decide what type works best but he will always wear one!
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