Wristbands are encircling strips worn on the wrist or lower forearm. The term can be used to refer to a

bracelet A bracelet is an article of jewellery that is worn around the wrist. Bracelets may serve different uses, such as being worn as an ornament. When worn as ornaments, bracelets may have a wikt:supportive, supportive function to hold other items of ...

-like band, similar to that of a

wristwatch A watch is a portable timepiece intended to be carried or worn by a person. It is designed to keep a consistent movement despite the motions caused by the person's activities. A wristwatch is designed to be worn around the wrist, attached by ...

, to the

cuff A cuff is a layer of fabric at the lower edge of the sleeve of a garment (shirt, coat, jacket, etc.) at the wrist, or at the ankle end of a trouser leg. The function of turned-back cuffs is to protect the cloth of the garment from fraying, an ...

or other part of a

sleeve A sleeve ( ang, slīef, a word allied to ''slip'', cf. Dutch ) is the part of a garment that covers the arm, or through which the arm passes or slips. The sleeve is a characteristic of fashion seen in almost every country and time period, acro ...

that covers the wrist, or decorative or functional bands worn on the wrist for many different reasons. Wristbands are often worn and used similarly to event passes such as

lanyard A lanyard is a cord, length of webbing, or strap that may serve any of various functions, which include a means of attachment, restraint, retrieval, and activation and deactivation. A lanyard is also a piece of rigging used to secure or lower ...

s to information or allow people entry to events. These wristbands are made from loops of

plastic Plastics are a wide range of synthetic or semi-synthetic materials that use polymers as a main ingredient. Their plasticity makes it possible for plastics to be moulded, extruded or pressed into solid objects of various shapes. This adaptab ...

that are placed around the

wrist In human anatomy, the wrist is variously defined as (1) the Carpal bones, carpus or carpal bones, the complex of eight bones forming the proximal skeletal segment of the hand; "The wrist contains eight bones, roughly aligned in two rows, known ...

and are used for identification purposes (demonstrating the wearer's authorization to be at a

venue Venue is the location at which an event takes place. It may refer to: Locations * Venue (law), the place a case is heard * Financial trading venue, a place or system where financial transactions can occur * Music venue, place used for a concer ...

, for example). Another type of wristband is the

sweatband A headband is a clothing accessory worn in the hair or around the forehead, usually to hold hair away from the face or eyes. Headbands generally consist of a loop of elastic material or a horseshoe-shaped piece of flexible plastic or metal. T ...

; usually made of a towel-like

terrycloth Terrycloth, terry cloth, terry cotton, terry toweling, terry, terry towel, or simply toweling is a fabric woven with many protruding loops of thread which can absorb large amounts of water. It can be manufactured by weaving or knitting. Terryclo ...

material. These are usually used to wipe sweat from the forehead during sport but have been known to be used as a badge or

fashion statement Fashion is a form of self-expression and autonomy at a particular period and place and in a specific context, of clothing, footwear, lifestyle, accessories, makeup, hairstyle, and body posture. The term implies a look defined by the fashion ind ...

. A practice common in mid-1980s

punk subculture The punk subculture includes a diverse and widely known array of ideologies, fashion, and other forms of expression, visual art, dance, literature, and film. Largely characterised by anti-establishment views, the promotion of individual freedom ...

was to cut the top off of a sock and fashion the

elastic Elastic is a word often used to describe or identify certain types of elastomer, elastic used in garments or stretchable fabrics. Elastic may also refer to: Alternative name * Rubber band, ring-shaped band of rubber used to hold objects togeth ...

into this type of wristband.

Silicone wristbands

In the early-to-mid-2000s (decade), bracelets often made of

silicone A silicone or polysiloxane is a polymer made up of siloxane (−R2Si−O−SiR2−, where R = organic group). They are typically colorless oils or rubber-like substances. Silicones are used in sealants, adhesives, lubricants, medicine, cooking ...

became popular. They are worn to demonstrate the wearer's support of a cause or

charitable organization A charitable organization or charity is an organization whose primary objectives are philanthropy and social well-being (e.g. educational, Religion, religious or other activities serving the public interest or common good). The legal definitio ...

, similar to

awareness ribbon Awareness ribbons are symbols meant to show support or raise consciousness for a cause. Different colours and patterns are associated with different issues. Yellow ribbons, in the United States, are used to show that a close family member is a ...

s. Such wristbands are sometimes called

awareness bracelets Gel bracelets (or jelly bracelets) are a type of wristband often made from silicone. Gel bracelets Gel bracelets usually have a rectangular or circular cross-section. They are stretchy and come in a variety of colors. They have been popular i ...

to distinguish them from other types of wristbands. In early 2007 they became an increasingly popular item being sold as merchandise at concerts & sporting events worldwide. The wristbands bearing official logos or trademarks enabled the seller to offer a low price point merchandise option to fans. Silicone wristbands may also be called gel wristbands, jelly wristbands, rubber wristbands and fundraising wristbands. All of these wristbands are made from the same silicone material.

UV ultra violet wristbands

UV Ultra Violet Sensitive silicone wristbands appear clear/white when out of UV light, but when exposed to ultra violet light such as sunlight the wristbands' color changes to blue or fuchsia. These bands can be used as reminders for people to apply sunscreen or stay in the shade on hot summer days.

Hospital wristbands

Hospital wristbands are a commonly used safety device for identifying patients undergoing medical care (see

patient safety Patient safety is a discipline that emphasizes safety in health care through the prevention, reduction, reporting and analysis of error and other types of unnecessary harm that often lead to adverse patient events. The frequency and magnitude of a ...

and

medical identification tag A medical identification tag is a small emblem or tag worn on a bracelet, neck chain, or on the clothing bearing a message that the wearer has an important medical condition that might require immediate attention. For emergency medical providers ...

). Available in a variety of sizes to accommodate patients as small as newborns and as large as obese adults, hospital wristbands can be handwritten, embossed, laser-printed or thermal-imaged with names, pictures, medical record numbers, barcodes and other personal identifiers. Laser printing and thermal imaging—the most advanced technologies for personalizing hospital wristbands—support fonts, colors and barcodes for improved

through electronic patient and medication tracking. Handwritten and embossed wristbands remain in widespread use, however, despite findings on compromised safety reported in 2007. The

National Patient Safety Agency The National Patient Safety Agency (NPSA) was a special health authority of the National Health Service (NHS) in England. It was established in 2001 to monitor patient safety incidents, including medication and prescribing error reporting, in the ...

(NPSA) found that as many as 2,900 patients each year were receiving the wrong medical care because of the hospital staff's inability to read damaged or otherwise illegible patient information on handwritten and embossed wristbands.

Event wristbands

Young Muslim spplicating in Masjid al-Haram, 6 April 2015

Colored wristbands are often given to people attending events such as

music festival A music festival is a community event with performances of singing and instrument playing that is often presented with a theme such as musical genre (e.g., rock, blues, folk, jazz, classical music), nationality, locality of musicians, or h ...

s and gigs as an

access control In the fields of physical security and information security, access control (AC) is the selective restriction of access to a place or other resource, while access management describes the process. The act of ''accessing'' may mean consuming ...

measure. Counterfeit wristbands are increasingly common. Silicone cristbands (some times referred to as

gel bracelet Gel bracelets (or jelly bracelets) are a type of wristband often made from silicone. Gel bracelets Gel bracelets usually have a rectangular or circular cross-section. They are stretchy and come in a variety of colors. They have been popular i ...

s) are popular for fundraising or showing support for a cause. An event organizer might create a custom wristband to give out or sell to those interested in an event or supporting a cause. Some people keep the wristbands as

souvenir A souvenir (), memento, keepsake, or token of remembrance is an object a person acquires for the memories the owner associates with it. A souvenir can be any object that can be collected or purchased and transported home by the traveler as a m ...

s or wear the wristbands after the event to show what events they went to. Further uses for the wristband in event ticketing at music festivals and sporting events may include an NFC (

near field communication Near-field communication (NFC) is a set of communication protocols that enables communication between two electronic devices over a distance of 4 cm (1 in) or less. NFC offers a low-speed connection through a simple setup that can be u ...

) chip that would allow

contactless payment Contactless payment systems are credit cards and debit cards, key fobs, smart cards, or other devices, including smartphones and other mobile devices, that use radio-frequency identification (RFID) or near-field communication (NFC, e.g. Samsun ...

at the concessions and turnstiles. Wristbands are ideal to use for dark environments such as night clubs and bars or outdoor venues where patrons can be afar such as festivals and theme parks. In addition these styles of colored wristbands are used with the above listed hospital patient bands to serve as an extra safety reminder and alert for

Allergies Allergies, also known as allergic diseases, refer a number of conditions caused by the hypersensitivity of the immune system to typically harmless substances in the environment. These diseases include hay fever, food allergies, atopic derma ...

. They will have a standard color and will have written labeling such as "Fall Risks" (which may come from medical conditions, injuries and/or medications used with the possibility of all of the above causing the increased safety risk warning), "Allergies" (to cover allergic reactions to vast to list per band type risks), "Latex Allergies" (to make sure medical safety gloves are not made of latex which is an immediate risk more than other allergies), amongst several other important cautions that would protect the patient by preventing

iatrogenic Iatrogenesis is the causation of a disease, a harmful complication, or other ill effect by any medical activity, including diagnosis, intervention, error, or negligence. "Iatrogenic", ''Merriam-Webster.com'', Merriam-Webster, Inc., accessed 2 ...

mistakes, reducing additional medical complications.

References

{{Clothing 2000s fashion Bracelets Symbols es:Muñequera

Silicone wristbands

UV ultra violet wristbands

Hospital wristbands

Event wristbands

See also

References