Jim Walker
I am posting this information only to disseminate factual information about the risks, behavioral changes, and responsibilities related to serving and consumption of alcohol.
Review these posts as “food for thought”.
Forensic Sci Int. 2009 Apr 15;186(1-3):56-62. Epub 2009 Feb 18
Five-year update on the occurrence of alcohol and other drugs in blood samples from drivers killed in road-traffic crashes in Sweden.Jones AW, Kugelberg FC, Holmgren A, Ahlner J.
Department of Forensic Genetics and Forensic Toxicology, National Board of Forensic Medicine, Artillerigatan 12, SE-587 58 Linköping, Sweden. wayne.jones@rmv.se
According to statistics provided by the Swedish National Road Administration (Vägverket), a total of 1403 drivers were killed in road-traffic crashes in Sweden between 2003 and 2007. Forensic autopsies were performed in approximately 97% of all deaths and specimens of blood and urine were sent for toxicological analysis.
In 60% of cases (N=835) the toxicology results were negative and 83% of these victims were men. The blood-alcohol concentration (BAC) was above the legal limit for driving (>0.2g/L) in 22% of cases (N=315). . Drivers with a punishable BAC were over-represented in single vehicle crashes compared with multiple vehicle crashes (67% vs 33%).
Despite an appreciable increase (12-fold) in number of arrests made by the police for drug-impaired driving after a zero-tolerance law was introduced (July 1999), alcohol still remains the psychoactive substance most frequently identified in the blood of drivers killed in road-traffic crashes.
Patterns of alcohol consumption and alcohol-impaired driving in the United States.
Flowers NT, Naimi TS,Brewer RD, Elder RW, Shults RA, Jiles R.Emerging Investigations and Analytic Methods Branch, Division of Adult and Community Health, National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia 30341, USA. ndf0@cdc.gov
BACKGROUND: Alcohol-related motor vehicle crashes kill approximately 17,000 Americans annually and were associated with more than $51 billion in total costs in 2000. Relatively little is known about the drinking patterns of alcohol-impaired (AI) drivers in the United States. METHODS: 2006 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) was analyzed for alcohol consumption and self-reported AI driving among U.S. adults aged > or =18 years for all states. Alcohol consumption was divided into 4 categories: binge/heavy, binge/nonheavy, nonbinge/heavy, and nonbinge/nonheavy. Binge drinking was defined as > or =5 drinks for men or > or =4 drinks for women on one or more occasions in the past month, and heavy drinking was defined as average daily consumption of >2 drinks/day (men) or >1 drink/day (women). The prevalence of AI driving was examined by drinking pattern and by demographic characteristics. Logistic regression analysis was used to assess the association between drinkin
g patterns and AI driving. RESULTS: Five percent of drinkers were engaged in AI driving during the past 30 days. Overall, 84% of AI drivers were binge drinkers and 88% of AI driving episodes involved binge drinkers. By drinking category, binge/nonheavy drinkers accounted for the largest percentage of AI drivers (49.4%), while binge/heavy drinkers accounted for the most episodes of AI driving (51.3%). The adjusted odds of AI driving were 20.1 (95% CI: 16.7, 24.3) for binge/heavy, 8.2 (6.9, 9.7) for binge/nonheavy, and 3.9 (2.4, 6.3) for nonbinge/heavy drinkers, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: There is a strong association between binge drinking and AI driving. Most AI drivers and almost half of all AI driving episodes involve persons who are not heavy drinkers (based on average daily consumption). Implementing effective interventions to prevent binge drinking could substantially reduce AI driving.