by Lisa Frederiksen
The most difficult obstacle to overcome when working to halt DUIs/DWIs 
— driving while impaired — is that by the time a person who has been drinking through dinner or over the course of an evening still thinks s/he is sober enough to drive, it’s way too late for them to make the right choice.
Drinking quantities of alcohol (even just 2 drinks in an hour) CHANGES the way the brain works; these changes last until the liver is able to metabolize (get rid of) the alcohol in the drinks the person has consumed; changes that affect motor control, judgment, and reaction time, for example.
Yes, a person chooses to drink; absolutely. But the choice that gets fuzzy once a person has been drinking is the decision to drive. Because even “just a couple,” clouds this decision-making capability by the very nature of the brain changes that have occurred as a consequence of how much they’ve had to drink. Sounds like a classic “Catch-22.” It is.
Below are a few excerpts from the California DMV chart to help you see where your BAC might fall after having “a couple of drinks” and then driving:
110-129 lbs: 2 or more drinks in one hour, your BAC is probably .08% or higher
130-149 lbs: 3 or more drinks in two hours, your BAC is probably .08% or higher
170-189 lbs: 4 or more drinks in two hours, your BAC is probably .08% or higher
So many factors contribute to how quickly alcohol passes through the small intestine, into the bloodstream, and onto the brain, where it “sits” until it is metabolized by the liver (at a very rough average rate of ABOUT one drink per hour). These variables include: weight, gender, whether food was eaten to slow down how quickly it passes into the bloodstream, stress, medications, tolerance, stage of brain development, lack of sleep — unfortunately, there is no hard and fast rule, other than, “Don’t Drink and Drive.”
But for those who really think they’re okay to drive, perhaps a new phone app released by t he Missouri Department of Transportation can help. Quoting from Addiction Treatment Magazine’s post on this new app, “ New App Hopes to Curb Drinking and Driving ,”
The program invites users to enter information such as gender, weight, beverage(s) consumed and time spent drinking into the smartphone. The app then makes a calculation of the drinker’s level of intoxication. The screen displays an estimated BAC (blood alcohol content) and an appropriate corresponding message such as “You’re buzzed, you could be arrested for drunk driving. Designate a sober driver.”
Also helpful, the app provides the phone number for a local taxi cab service. The tool comes with a disclaimer that makes it plain that the BAC is an estimate and does not constitute evidence that could be used in a court of law.
The app — called “Show Me the Buzz” — is free and can be downloaded by clicking here…
by Lisa Frederiksen
The most difficult obstacle to overcome when working to halt DUIs/DWIs
— driving while impaired — is that by the time a person who has been drinking through dinner or over the course of an evening still thinks s/he is sober enough to drive, it’s way too late for them to make the right choice.
Drinking quantities of alcohol (even just 2 drinks in an hour) CHANGES the way the brain works; these changes last until the liver is able to metabolize (get rid of) the alcohol in the drinks the person has consumed; changes that affect motor control, judgment, and reaction time, for example.
Yes, a person chooses to drink; absolutely. But the choice that gets fuzzy once a person has been drinking is the decision to drive. Because even “just a couple,” clouds this decision-making capability by the very nature of the brain changes that have occurred as a consequence of how much they’ve had to drink. Sounds like a classic “Catch-22.” It is.
Below are a few excerpts from the California DMV chart to help you see where your BAC might fall after having “a couple of drinks” and then driving:
110-129 lbs: 2 or more drinks in one hour, your BAC is probably .08% or higher
130-149 lbs: 3 or more drinks in two hours, your BAC is probably .08% or higher
170-189 lbs: 4 or more drinks in two hours, your BAC is probably .08% or higher
So many factors contribute to how quickly alcohol passes through the small intestine, into the bloodstream, and onto the brain, where it “sits” until it is metabolized by the liver (at a very rough average rate of ABOUT one drink per hour). These variables include: weight, gender, whether food was eaten to slow down how quickly it passes into the bloodstream, stress, medications, tolerance, stage of brain development, lack of sleep — unfortunately, there is no hard and fast rule, other than, “Don’t Drink and Drive.”
But for those who really think they’re okay to drive, perhaps a new phone app released by t he Missouri Department of Transportation can help. Quoting from Addiction Treatment Magazine’s post on this new app, “ New App Hopes to Curb Drinking and Driving ,”
The app — called “Show Me the Buzz” — is free and can be downloaded by clicking here…