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Motorcyclists over the age of 60 should be more cautious while out on the road, a new study warns, as older cyclists are 2 and a half times more likely to suffer severe injuries compared to riders in their 20s and 30s.

A study by Brown University looked at data collected from over 1.5 million motorcycle accidents. They found that cyclists, who begin motorcycling later in life, or return to it, are more likely to endure more significant injuries if they crash.

When divided by age groups, more than 921,000 of the incidents involved riders aged 20 to 39, more than 466,000 involved those aged 40 to 59 and more than 65,000 involved those 60 and older, according to the study, which was published online Feb. 6 in the journal Injury Prevention.

Compared to younger riders, the risk of serious injury in a crash was 66 percent higher for middle-aged riders and two and a half times higher for those aged 60 and older.

"There are always some risks involved with motorcycles. But there may be some physical factors that make older riders more prone to being in an accident, or more prone to injury," says lead author Tracy Jackson.

"The greater severity of injuries among older adults may be due to the physiological changes that occur as the body ages. Bone strength decreases, subcutaneous and visceral fat distribution may change, and there is a decrease in the elasticity of the chest wall. . . . Other factors such as delayed reaction time, altered balance and worsening vision may also make older adults more prone to getting into crashes."

The percentage of motorcyclists over the age of 50 more than doubled from about 10 percent in 1990 to 25 percent in 2003. The average age of people involved in a motorcycle crash has steadily increased, with rates of injuries among riders over 65 increasing by 145 percent between 2000 and 2006, according to the study