If you can’t see straight, you better think straight—don’t get behind the wheel. Know the risks of drunk and drugged driving:
Along with marijuana, prescription drugs are also commonly linked to drugged driving crashes. In 2016, 19.7 percent of drivers who drove while under the influence tested positive for some type of opioid.
It's hard to measure how many crashes are caused by drugged driving. This is because:some drugs can stay in your system for days or weeks after use, making it difficult to determine when the drug was used, and therefore, how and if it impaired driving police don't usually test for drugs if drivers have reached an illegal blood alcohol level because there's already enough evidence for a DUI charge many drivers who cause crashes are found to have both drugs and alcohol or more than one drug in their system, making it hard to know which substance had the greater effect However, according to the Governors Highway Safety Association, 43.6 percent of fatally injured drivers in 2016 tested positive for drugs and over half of those drivers were positive for two or more drugs.affects psychomotor skills and cognitive functions critical to driving including vigilance, drowsiness, time and distance perception, reaction time, divided attention, lane tracking, coordination, and balance.can reduce coordination, concentration, ability to track moving objects and reduce response to emergency driving situations as well as difficulty steering and maintaining lane position. It can also cause drowsiness.Teen and older adult drivers are most often affected by drugged driving. Teens are less experienced and are more likely than other drivers to underestimate or not recognize dangerous situations. They are also more likely to speed and allow less distance between vehicles. When lack of driving experience is combined with drug use, the results can be tragic. Car crashes are the leading cause of death among young people aged 16 to 19 years.A study of college students with access to a car found that 1 in 6 had driven under the influence of a drug other than alcohol at least once in the past year. Marijuana was the most common drug used, followed by cocaine and prescription pain relievers.Mental decline in older adults can lead to taking a prescription drug more or less often than they should or in the wrong amount. Older adults also may not break down the drug in their system as quickly as younger people. These factors can lead to unintended intoxication while behind the wheel of a car.Because drugged driving puts people at a higher risk for crashes, public health experts urge people who use drugs and alcohol to develop social strategies to prevent them from getting behind the wheel of a car while impaired. Steps people can take include:getting a ride to and from parties where there are alcohol and/or drugs.Use of illicit drugs or misuse of prescription drugs can make driving a car unsafe—just like driving after drinking alcohol. In 2017, 21.4 million people aged 16 or older drove under the influence of alcohol in the past year and 12.8 million drove under the influence of illicit drugs. It's hard to measure how many crashes are caused by drugged driving, but estimates show that almost 44 percent of drivers in fatal car crashes tested positive for drugs.People who use drugs and alcohol should develop social strategies to prevent them from getting behind the wheel of a car while impaired.
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