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Chapter 11 - Alcohol and Traffic Safety

Physiological Effects

The use of any drug may adversely affect a person's driving ability.

Physical fitness is a major aspect of being a safe driver. The use and abuse of alcohol and other drugs pose a serious health problem that can severely impair any person's ability to properly perform the driving task. Below is a summary of the effects of alcohol and drugs on the driving task and society as a whole.

Alcohol/Drugs and Driving

• Alcohol-impaired driving causes about one-third of traffic fatalities, both nationally and in the state of New York. It does not help that ethyl alcohol is the most commonly used and abused controlled substance in the United States.
• In all 50 states, you may be convicted of "driving while intoxicated" (or the equivalent) with a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of .08%. Penalties for this offense include fines, imprisonment, and loss of the driving privilege.
• "Blood alcohol concentration" or BAC is the amount of alcohol in any given amount of blood. A person's BAC, and the accompanying impairment of essential bodily functions, is primarily dependent on his or her size and the amount of alcohol he or she consumed in a given period of time.
• As a person's BAC increases, the driving ability becomes even more impaired and the probability of a traffic crash increases dramatically.
• The use of any drug may adversely affect a person's driving ability. When more than one drug is taken at a time, it can be particularly dangerous because each drug can add significantly to the effects of the other. This is especially true when one of the drugs is alcohol.

The Alcohol/Drug Related Traffic Safety Problem

Below are some definitions used in determining whether a person is under the influence:

• A drug is any substance that is ingested or injected in expectation of achieving a more desirable physical and/or mental state. It may be prescribed and can be either legal or illegal.
• Drug use means taking a drug in any amount under any circumstance. A drug user is anyone who uses any drug for any reason.
• Alcohol-related traffic crashes are those in which ethyl alcohol was found to be present in one or more of the drivers involved. Alcohol-impaired-driving crashes are those in which the amount of ethyl alcohol is .08% or greater.
• The legal definition of intoxicated is having a blood alcohol level of .08%, or not having the normal use of mental and physical faculties by reason of the introduction of alcohol, a controlled substance, a drug, or a combination of two or more of these substances into the body.
• DWI is the abbreviation for "Driving While Intoxicated," and DWAI stands for "Driving While Ability Impaired." DWAI-Drugs is used when drugs are involved. Other states may use DUI and/or DUID; DUI stands for "Driving Under the Influence" (same as DWI) while DUID stands for "Driving Under the Influence of Drugs" (same as DWAI-Drugs).

Here are some statistics on alcohol and drug use in the United States today:

• One out of every four Americans takes some type of drug on a daily basis. Their use causes about 30% of all Americans to die prematurely and costs our nation's economy more than $100 billion a year.
• Alcohol is the most commonly used and abused drug in the United States. Recent statistical data indicates that approximately 1/3 of all traffic deaths (about 13,000) each year are a result of alcohol-impaired-driving crashes. Responsibility for fatal crashes is nearly three times greater for a drinking driver.
• Statistics indicate that someone is killed in an alcohol-impaired-driving crash every 40 minutes. Three out of every ten Americans today will be involved in an alcohol-related traffic crash sometime in their life.
• Nearly half of those killed in alcohol-impaired-driving crashes were not driving at the time of the collision.
• Records show that most people killed in alcohol-impaired-driving crashes and most drivers arrested for DWI had a BAC that was more than one and a half times the legal or presumptive limit of .08%.
• Although only about 7% of people who drink alcohol ever drink enough to reach a BAC of .15%, about one-fifth of all traffic deaths involve drivers at or above this level of intoxication. For every legally drunk driver on our roads today, there are at least 30 others driving with lesser degrees of alcohol impairment.
• Statistics show that both the probability and the severity of a traffic crash increase dramatically as a driver's BAC increases. A person's risk of a crash doubles at a BAC of .05%, increases 7-fold at a BAC of .10%, and at a BAC of .15% it is 25 times greater than when that individual is totally sober. Less than 10% of traffic crashes in which only property damage occurs are alcohol-related.
• Typically, the monetary cost of being convicted of DWI can easily exceed $5,000, increasing insurance premiums alone by at least 60% for three years.

The Effects of Alcohol on the Driving Process

Alcohol impairs a person's ability to drive. But how is the driving task affected? Below are the driving skills that are affected by alcohol:

A BAC as low as .03% can adversely affect visual acuity.

1. Scanning ahead. About 90% of what a driver identifies in a driving environment is through his or her sense of vision. A BAC as low as .03% can diminish a person's muscular control by relaxing the fine eye muscles, thereby adversely affecting visual acuity, depth perception, peripheral vision, color recognition and night vision.
2. Anticipation. The ability to anticipate possible outcomes resulting from a traffic situation depends on a person's ability to accurately process the information from scanning ahead. Alcohol impairs judgment and other mental functions needed to process what a person sees.
3. Decision-Making. The ability to make good decisions involves the brain and the thinking process. A BAC as low as .045% reduces these abilities by up to 15%. In addition, a driver becomes more willing to take greater risks after drinking. Alcohol tends to produce uninhibited and aggressive behavior, leading to poor driving decisions.
4. Executing Driving Tactics. While alcohol affects a driver's judgment and thinking first; it will eventually impair the motor skills, such as muscle coordination, necessary for maintaining control of the vehicle.

Extensive research on how alcohol consumption affects driving ability and collision probability has yielded the following results:

1. A BAC of only .05%, driving performance is impaired by up to 30%.
2. At a BAC as low as .02%, a driver's ability to clearly see and distinguish moving objects becomes noticeably impaired.
3. At a BAC as low as .03%, eye-hand-foot coordination becomes impaired.
4. At a BAC of .08%, the ability to detect low-contrast, low-illumination objects (such as joggers wearing dark clothes with no reflection or lights) is usually impaired.
5. At a BAC of .05%, peripheral vision is impaired by 10%.
6. The more complex a driving situation, the greater the degree of impairment that will result from a given BAC level. Thus alcohol, even in small doses, reduces the "time-sharing" efficiency of the brain.

Physiological Effects

In order to understand alcohol's impact on your driving abilities, you must understand how it affects your body. Alcohol is a central nervous system (CNS) depressant. A depressant is any drug that relaxes the body by slowing down the central nervous system, particularly the brain. The physiological effects of alcohol are determined by:

1. Body size. Larger persons have a greater volume of blood than those who are smaller. As a result, a given quantity of alcohol will generally result in a lower BAC. However, additional body weight in the form of fat is not helpful because alcohol does not dissolve in fatty tissue.
2. Alcohol content. The more alcohol a given drink contains and the more drinks one consumes in a given period of time, the higher the resulting BAC.
3. Drink size. A larger serving will usually contain more alcohol and produce a higher BAC than a smaller one, especially if it is the same type of drink.
4. Drinking time. All other factors being equal, the shorter the time period in which drinking occurs, the higher one's BAC will be. Conversely, the more time that passes after drinking, the lower the BAC becomes.
5. Amount of food ingested. Although no food will absorb or neutralize alcohol, it may initially coat the stomach lining and slow absorption somewhat. However, this situation is only temporary, as virtually all of the alcohol will eventually be absorbed into the bloodstream.

Psychological Effects

Alcohol affects one psychologically as follows:

1. Attention. The ability to concentrate, especially when it comes to multi-tasking, is diminished.
2. Memory. A BAC as low as .03% can cause an inability to store and retain information, which is vital for memory.
3. Emotions. As more alcohol is consumed, a person's control of his or her emotions decreases.
4. Aggression. In a competitive situation, aggressive behavior tends to be enhanced, especially in males.
5. Tolerance. Especially in the early stages of intoxication, some people learn to compensate by developing coping mechanisms that mask the effects of alcohol, such as not participating in those activities that might reveal their impairment.

Alcohol affects the brain and the central nervous system more than it does any other area of the body.

How Alcohol Affects the Brain, Eyes and Liver

The Brain

Research shows that alcohol affects the brain and the central nervous system more than it does any other area of the body. This organ is perhaps the most important one because it regulates several complex bodily functions such as circulation, breathing and digestion. The brain also controls the processing of information as well as your emotions and memory, which you need for complex tasks like driving. Any alcohol you drink is quickly absorbed into the bloodstream and then heads to the brain. Once it reaches the brain, alcohol can cut off oxygen, which can kill brain cells because the brain requires such large amounts of oxygen. This slows down and impairs your reasoning and motor skills, which increases your reaction time.

The Eyes

When alcohol has such a profound effect on the brain, it will also affect vision. Alcohol relaxes the muscles in the eyes when consumed and makes it more difficult to focus, which may result in blurred or double vision. As discussed earlier, depth perception becomes a problem, and you will have difficulty adapting to changes in light, such as darkness and glare from headlights coming from other vehicles. The result is that simple tasks become harder to perform. Driving, which is a complex set of tasks, becomes an adventure because people or objects on the road may be difficult to see or even overlooked, particularly at night or in adverse conditions. The eyes move less, which means less scanning of the road for hazards. This creates a problem with perceiving the distance and speed of other objects. In short, alcohol affects the eyes, resulting in the following:

• A tendency to stare straight ahead
• A narrowing of the field of vision
• A reduction in depth perception
• Reduced adaptability to darkness
• An increased sensitivity to glare
• A longer time to readjust after glare

Driving a motor vehicle requires many coordinated functions, and these are adversely impacted by alcohol and other drugs.

Excessive amounts of alcohol overworks your liver and may lead to liver failure.

The Liver

The liver is vital to your long-term health. It is one of the largest organs in the body. It stores nutrients vital to the body, protects it from disease, and metabolizes and eliminates toxins such as alcohol. The liver is capable of oxidizing approximately one ounce of hard liquor per hour. However, when you drink excessive amounts frequently, the alcohol overworks your liver and may lead to liver disease (including cancer) and liver failure. As few as three drinks at a time may harm your liver.

If a person continues to abuse alcohol, he or she may develop more serious conditions such as cirrhosis. When the liver is injured, it swells and accumulates fat in the liver cells. The greater the damage, the more likely scar tissue can form, leading to cirrhosis. Vision and body nutrition can decline as a result of liver damage.

Stages of Influence

The table below describes some possible physical effects of alcohol at certain BAC levels. Remember, alcohol affects everyone differently, so do not use this table to measure how much alcohol you have in your body.

Stage	B.A.C. Level	Feeling	Explanation of Feeling
1	.01-.04 percent	No overt effects	Slight feeling of muscle relaxation, slight mood elevation.
2	.05-.07 percent	"Happy"	Feeling of relaxation, warmth. Slight increase in reaction time, decrease in fine muscle coordination.
3	.08-.15 percent	"Excited"	Balance, speech, vision and hearing slightly impaired. Feelings of euphoria, increase in reaction time and increased loss of motor coordination.
4	.16-.20 percent	"Confused"	Major impairment of mental and physical control. Slurred speech, blurred vision, lack of motor skills.
5	.21-.30 percent	"Stupor"	Loss of motor control -- person needs assistance moving around. Minimal control of mind and body.
6	.31-.40 percent	"Close to Coma"	Unconsciousness -- little to no reflexes. Subnormal temperature, lack of circulation. Threshold of a coma.
7	.41 percent +	"High Probability of DEATH"	Deep coma. Probability of death from respiratory paralysis.

Identifying a Drunk Driver

Driving is difficult when the body is impaired. Motorists under the influence use a variety of coping measures that will help you to identify them on the road. A driver who is under the influence may do any of the following:

• Make wide turns.
• Drive on the wrong side of the road.
• Weave in and out of lanes.
• Straddle lanes or drive on the center line.
• Drive with headlights off or use high beams at night.
• Tailgate other vehicles.
• Make abrupt or illegal turns.
• Brake erratically or stop for no apparent reason.
• Drive too fast.
• Drive too slow (significantly below the speed limit).
• React slowly.
• Have windows open at night or in cold weather.

If you spot any of the above actions in a driver, or you suspect that driver to be under the influence, be prepared to take quick, evasive action. Never attempt to pass an impaired driver's vehicle or follow too closely. If you are being tailgated, make a quick turn at the nearest intersection or parking lot when it is safe, and return to your route after that driver passes.

Video: "Just Another Saturday Night"

The following video examines the events and decisions that led up to a drunk driving incident and the impact it has on those affected.

If you ever have to make the decision whether to drink and drive, consider the effects your actions will have on others.

Legal Aspects

In the state of New York, you may be arrested if you are intoxicated while driving or operating a motor vehicle in a public place. Below are the specific offenses:

DWI/DWAI

• Driving while intoxicated (DWI). You will be charged with this if you are stopped for driving with a BAC of .08% or higher.
• Driving while ability impaired by alcohol (DWAI). You will be charged with this if the officer believes you are impaired, which is when you have a BAC of over .05% but less than .08%.
• Driving while ability impaired by a drug (DWAI-drug).

The way the police determine your BAC is to have you submit to a chemical test, although you can still be charged and convicted based on an officer's observation of your appearance and behavior.

The police will ask you to submit to a chemical test if you are arrested for DWI.

Implied Consent

Under the Implied Consent Law, you gave your consent at the time you received your driver's license to submit to a chemical test if you are arrested for DWI. This means that you must take either a blood or breath test when asked by law enforcement. If you are asked to take a chemical test and you refuse, the officer will often read you the implied consent warnings. Refusal will often call for a civil penalty of $500 and a license suspension of one year, as well as the presumption that you are under the influence of alcohol. Both the civil penalty and length of the suspension increase with subsequent refusals. These chemical tests are not to be confused with Field Sobriety Tests (FSTs are often administered on the side of the road - see examples of FST discussed below), but are actual chemical tests admissible as evidence in DWI and DWAI cases.

Administrative Per Se (Per Se)

When you drive in New York, you consent to take a blood or breath test if you are stopped for driving under the influence of alcohol, drugs, or both. This law allows an officer to confiscate your driver's license if you refuse to take or fail to complete a test or have a BAC exceeding .08%. This effectively allows for a suspension of the driving privilege without any formal DMV or court action. The police officer will take away your driver's license and serve you with an order of suspension or revocation. In most court cases, a person is presumed innocent until proven guilty, but when you test with a BAC of .08% or higher, it is your burden to prove your innocence.

Zero Tolerance Law (drivers under 21)

In New York, it is illegal for anyone under 21 to consume an amount of alcohol that brings a persons BAC to .02% or higher. The idea behind "zero tolerance" is to prevent minors from driving with any measurable amount of alcohol. For example, if a young driver were to take an alcohol-based cough medicine, testing could detect the alcohol and result in that person being charged with a zero tolerance violation. If a police officer suspects a driver who is under the age of 21 of drinking alcohol, that person will be required to take a breath-screening test. If the test results show that you have a BAC of .02% or higher, you may be charged with one of the following, depending on your BAC:

• BAC of .02% to .07% - Driving after having consumed alcohol (zero tolerance violation). You will be required to appear before an administrative law judge of the DMV.
• BAC over .05% but less than .08% - Driving while ability is impaired by alcohol (DWAI). If the police decide to charge you with DWAI instead of a zero tolerance violation, you will be required to go to criminal court.
• BAC of .08% or more - Driving while intoxicated (DWI).

A violation of the zero tolerance law will result in the following minimum penalties:

• License suspension of 6 months.
• Civil penalty of $125.
• Fee of $100 when your license is returned.

If you refuse to take a breath test, your license will be revoked for a minimum of one year. If you have any alcohol-related traffic offenses on your record, your license will be revoked for one year or until you reach the age of 21, whichever is longer.

Open Alcoholic Beverage Containers

It is legal to have a container of liquor, beer or wine in your car as long as:

• It is full.
• It is sealed.
• It is unopened.

It is against the law to have an open container of alcohol in the car, whether you are the driver or a passenger. You will face a fine of up to $150, two points assessed against your license record, a mandatory surcharge, a crime victim assistance fee, and potential imprisonment of up to 15 days for a first offense. For a subsequent offense within 18 months, the penalties will be higher.

Fines and Penalties

If you break the law, you must pay the price.

A simple fact of life: If you break the law, you must pay the price. However, if you drink and drive, you may also pay with your life. The punishment for a DWI or DWAI offense will vary with the level of intoxication in addition to other variables, but listed below are some penalties to expect:

Driving While Ability Impaired by Alcohol (DWAI)

First Offense (Traffic Infraction)

• Fine of $300 to $500, plus a mandatory surcharge and crime victims assistance fee
• Suspension of driving privilege for 90 days
• Possible imprisonment for up to 15 days

Second Offense Within 5 Years (Traffic Infraction)

• Fine of $500 to $750, plus a mandatory surcharge and crime victims assistance fee
• Revocation of driving privilege for a minimum of 6 months
• Possible imprisonment for up to 30 days

Third Offense Within 10 Years (Misdemeanor)

• Fine of $750 to $1,500, plus a mandatory surcharge and crime victims assistance fee
• Possible imprisonment for up to 180 days
• Revocation of driving privilege for a minimum of 6 months, if violation occurs within 5 years of previous offense

Driving While Intoxicated (DWI) or DWAI-Drugs

First Offense (misdemeanor)

• Fine of $500 to $1,000, plus a mandatory surcharge and crime victims assistance fee
• Revocation of driving privilege for a minimum of 6 months
• Possible imprisonment for up to 1 year

Second Offense Within 5 Years (Class E Felony)

• Fine of $1,000 to $5,000, plus a mandatory surcharge and crime victims assistance fee
• Revocation of driving privilege for a minimum of 1 year
• Possible imprisonment for up to 4 years, with a minimum of 5 days in jail or 30 days of community service
• Installation of an ignition interlock device
• Mandatory alcohol assessment

Third or Subsequent Offense Within 5 Years (Class D Felony)

• Fine of $2,000 to $10,000, plus a mandatory surcharge and crime victims assistance fee
• Revocation of driving privilege for a minimum of 1 year
• Possible imprisonment for up to 7 years, with a minimum of 10 days in jail or 60 days of community service
• Installation of an ignition interlock device
• Mandatory alcohol assessment

Second Offense Within 10 Years (Class E Felony)

• Fine of $1,000 to $5,000, plus a mandatory surcharge and crime victims assistance fee
• Revocation of driving privilege for a minimum of 1 year
• Possible imprisonment for up to 4 years

Third or Subsequent Offense Within 10 Years (Class D Felony)

• Fine of $2,000 to $10,000, plus a mandatory surcharge and crime victims assistance fee
• Revocation of driving privilege for a minimum of 1 year
• Possible imprisonment for up to 7 years

Aggravated DWI

Driving with a BAC of .18% or higher will result in an Aggravated DWI charge. The penalties are as follows:

First Offense (Misdemeanor)

• Fine of $1,000 to $2,500, plus a mandatory surcharge and crime victims assistance fee
• Revocation of driving privilege for a minimum of 1 year
• Possible imprisonment for up to 1 year

Second Offense Within 5 Years (Class E Felony)

• Fine of $1,000 to $5,000, plus a mandatory surcharge and crime victims assistance fee
• Revocation of driving privilege for a minimum of 18 months
• Possible imprisonment for up to 4 years, with a minimum of 5 days in jail or 30 days of community service

Third Offense Within 10 Years (Class D Felony)

• Fine of $2,000 to $10,000, plus a mandatory surcharge and crime victims assistance fee
• Revocation of driving privilege for a minimum of 18 months
• Possible imprisonment for up to 7 years, with a minimum of 10 days in jail or 60 days of community service

Additional Penalties

• If you kill or seriously injure another person as a result of DWI or DWAI, you may face vehicular manslaughter or assault charges, which will result in a fine of up to $5,000 and imprisonment for up to 7 years.
• If you are convicted of two DWI violations and both resulted in physical injuries, your license will be revoked permanently.
• If you drive while your license is suspended or revoked, you will be fined $200 to $1,000 and face mandatory imprisonment or probation. If you were impaired or intoxicated at the time of arrest, the fine will be $5,000, and your vehicle may be seized and forfeited.

Awareness and enforcement of drinking driving laws do help to reduce alcohol-related traffic fatalities. Despite the fact that the population of licensed drivers has been growing, the overall number of deaths from alcohol-related crashes has remained relatively constant within the last ten years.

Examples of FSTs

A drunk driver would have trouble with a simple balance test.

The field sobriety test, or FST, involves a field determination of a driver's ability to operate a motor vehicle. The test given may include the following:

A. Balance Test

The driver may be asked to raise one leg off the ground and touch the nose with the index finger. A drinking driver's equilibrium is affected, so the individual would have trouble with this simple balance skill.

B. Walking a Straight Line

An officer may ask the driver to walk along a line on the roadway, moving the feet heel to toe and repeating. Again, balance is observed.

C. Counting Backwards

Speech is dramatically affected when alcohol is consumed. Counting backwards will reveal slurred speech patterns, as well as one's ability to concentrate on a simple task. Playing certain songs backwards supposedly reveals hidden messages.

D. Touching Finger Tips

Basic coordination is influenced adversely by alcohol. When asked to touch fingertip to fingertip, the drinking driver often has extreme difficulty.

The nystagmus test relies on the effect that alcohol consumption has on the ocular nerves.

E. Following Directions

The officer may ask the driver to perform a series of simple tasks a specific way to help determine his or her sobriety level. Following basic directions is very difficult when alcohol is introduced to the brain.

F. Nystagmus Test

The nystagmus test relies on the effect that alcohol consumption has on the ocular nerves. Consumption of alcohol slowly weakens the eye muscles to the point where the eye can no longer follow in "smooth pursuit" of the finger or object being moved horizontally by the peace officer. An expert in this field (the peace officer) will verify that the fluttering or twitching of the ocular muscle is a direct result of the alcohol.

Effects of Other Common Drugs on the Driving Task

Alcohol is not the only drug that can affect your ability to drive safely. Many illicit drugs create effects that impair your senses, making it difficult to drive. Even medicines prescribed to you by your physician or purchased over the counter can make you dangerous behind the wheel. Different drugs affect the body differently, but while certain drugs may not make you feel drowsy, they will still impair you in other ways. It's also important to note that our bodies will react differently to drugs as we mature due to the physical changes that take place.

Synergistic Effects

The drugs that can be prescribed or purchased fall into different categories, with some being illegal. These include depressants, stimulants, narcotics, and hallucinogens. Never mix drugs except under the supervision of your physician. Taking two or more drugs at the same time may result in more than a "one-plus-one" effect, or synergism. This means that the total effect of combining drugs may be greater than and quite different from that expected from the sum of their individual effects. Any time alcohol is mixed with another drug, it is likely to produce a synergistic effect. Following are brief descriptions of each type and how they affect the driving task.

Marijuana

Classified as a mild hallucinogen, marijuana primarily affects the way a user perceives things. It can relieve patients of the effects of glaucoma and nausea, increase appetite, and provide pain relief, to name a few medicinal uses. However, it is illegal in all forms, but even if it becomes legal, it can affect a driver. Marijuana is currently second only to alcohol as the drug most often found in the bodies of traffic crash victims. In recent years, the strength of marijuana (amount of the psychoactive ingredient THC) has increased significantly because of improved growing methods. It can act as a stimulant or depressant, depending on the user's mood and experience with the drug. Studies on the effects of marijuana on driving performance have led to the following findings:

Marijuana is second only to alcohol as the drug most often found in the bodies of traffic crash victims.

1. It slows down complex reaction time, giving the driver less time to avoid dangerous situations.
2. Errors in recognition and interpretation of traffic signs, signals, and pavement markings are more likely.
3. It produces a more passive behavior, which can lead to a tendency to drive at slower speeds than normal, which can interfere with the movement of other traffic.
4. It diminishes a driver's attention span and the ability to concentrate on several things simultaneously (think multi-tasking).
5. It impairs a driver's ability to accurately judge time and distance relationships, causing problems in allowing adequate space for passing, following and stopping.
6. Combining marijuana with alcohol produces a synergistic effect leading to significantly worse driving performance than that experienced when either drug is taken alone.

Cocaine

Classified as a stimulant, cocaine can produce extreme mood swings, from feelings of joy and happiness to violent hallucinations and severe depression. Here are some facts about this drug:

Cocaine can produce extreme mood swings.

1. Both usage and cocaine-related deaths in the U.S. have increased dramatically since 1980.
2. Side effects that reduces a person's ability to drive safely include:
   1. Blurred vision
   2. Slower glare recovery
   3. Impaired perception
   4. Heightened impulsive or impatient behavior
   5. Enhanced aggressive or hostile behavior
   6. Distorted decision-making

Over-the-Counter Drugs

An inhalant is any breathable chemical that produces psychoactive vapors or fumes.

Drugs such as aspirin, sleeping aids, antihistamines, cold remedies, and products containing caffeine are some of the most commonly used over-the-counter drugs (also referred to collectively as non-prescription drugs). They account for 70% of all legal drug purchases. Over-the-counter drugs can be effective if used properly, but they can and do impair your ability to drive safely. They are legally required to have labels that provide adequate directions for use, which should be strictly followed, and they must include any warnings, such as for operating heavy machinery.

Prescription Drugs

Physicians prescribe various drugs to treat various ailments or relieve symptoms. These also provide directions for use that should be strictly followed, not only to accomplish the intended purpose, but also to limit dangerous and undesirable side effects such as drowsiness and reduced alertness. As with any other drug, excessive usage can be harmful. Some prescription drugs can adversely affect a person's ability to stay alert and react to hazardous driving situations.

Inhalants

An inhalant is any breathable chemical (usually a solvent) that produces psychoactive vapors or fumes. Though not usually considered drugs, using inhalants can result in impaired vision and judgment, reduced muscular control, lower blood pressure, heart irregularities, inflammation of the nasal passages and lungs, wheezing and coughing, and asphyxiation, in severe cases. Their intoxicating effects are immediate and can last from 15 to 45 minutes after inhaling has stopped.

Counter-Measures

If you're old enough to drive a motor vehicle, you are assumed to be mature enough to make rational decisions. One such rational decision you can make is to live by this old adage when it comes to drinking: "Everything in moderation, nothing in excess." You should not drink and drive (definitely not when you are impaired), but if you do, you should drink in moderation and realize the potential consequences of your actions.

Drinking in Moderation

You must set a limit in advance on how much you are going to drink. Moderate drinking, as defined by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, is up to one drink a day for women and up to two drinks for men. One drink of alcohol is about 12 ounces of beer, 5 ounces of wine, and 1.5 ounces of 80-proof liquor. To help you limit how much you drink, you should avoid drinks with high alcohol concentration. Leave part of the drink in the glass. Sip slowly. Try not to consume more than one drink per hour. Be constantly aware of your physical and emotional condition.

Use a designated driver so you do not drink and drive.

Preventing Impaired Driving

There are things you can do to make sure YOU do not drink and drive.

• Make arrangements ahead of time to stay somewhere.
• Use a designated driver (someone who will not be drinking in order to drive you back home). If you are in a large group, you should have more than one designated driver.
• Call a taxi.
• Don't drink at all.

When you do drink, you should:

• Eat prior to and during drinking.
• Set limits.
• Drink in moderation.
• Be constantly aware of your physical and emotional condition.
• If you do drink, don't drive.

If you see someone who appears to be too impaired to drive ready to take off, you can try and make sure that person does not drive by taking away the car keys. If the keys are somewhere else, take them when the person is otherwise occupied. If it's someone close to you, talk with that person privately. If you don't know that person well, talk to people who do and ask them to deal with the person. Avoid publicly confronting anyone who is impaired because that may only make that person more determined to drive.