College and University Blog

Drunk driving has increased among college students over the past few years. This is according to a report from the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA). An estimated 2.8 million drove while under the influence of alcohol in 2001, compared to 2.3 million in 1998.

You should always question whether it is safe to drive after consuming any amount of alcohol. Impairment can begin long before a person reaches the blood alcohol concentration (BAC) level necessary to be guilty of drunk driving. In all 50 states, the legal limit for drunk driving is a BAC level of .08. A 120-pound woman can reach a .08 BAC level after only two drinks and a 180-pound man can be at .08 after only four drinks. A drink is considered one shot of liquor, a five-ounce glass of wine, or one beer. Impairment begins with the first drink. It is important to note that the effects of alcohol intoxication are greatly influenced by individual variations among users. Some users may become intoxicated at a much lower BAC than others. Driving under the higher levels of impairment seems an impossibility, but you commonly see DUI arrests with these extreme BACs.

• .02 BAC Level

At the .02 BAC level, people exhibit some loss of judgment, begin to relax, and feel good. Drivers at the .02 level experience a decline in visual functions. This can affect their ability to track a moving object. They also experience a decline in the ability to perform two tasks at the same time. These changes may be very subtle or barely noticeable at this level.

• .05 BAC Level

At the .05 BAC level, people begin to exhibit exaggerated behavior, experience loss of small-muscle control, have impaired judgment, have lowered alertness, and a release of inhibition. When driving, a person with a .05 BAC would be operating the vehicle with reduced coordination, a further diminished ability to track moving objects, difficulty in steering, and a reduced response in emergency situations. The person may experience intensified emotions.

• .08 BAC level

.08 is the level of legal intoxication. Drivers will experience poor muscle coordination, affecting their balance, speech, vision, reaction time and hearing. They will find difficult to detect danger. They will also exhibit impaired judgment, self-control, reasoning ability, and memory. Drivers will also find it more difficult to concentrate, judge the speed of the vehicle, experience reduced information processing capability, and exhibit impaired perception. You will probably believe that you are functioning better than you really are.

• 0.11 BAC Level

Drivers will experience significant impairment of motor coordination and loss of good judgment Speech may be slurred. Balance, vision, reaction time, and hearing will be impaired. The person may experience euphoria.

• 0.14 BAC Level

Drivers will experience gross motor impairment and lack of physical control. They will experience blurred vision and major loss of balance. Euphoria is reduced and dysphoria (anxiety, restlessness) starts to appear. Judgment and perception are severely impaired.

• 0.17 BAC Level

Dysphoria predominates. Nausea may appear. The drinker has the appearance of a

Posted on 31 Jan