Let’s Talk About

drowsy Driving

Information from the Illinois Department of Public Health

Division of Injury and Tobacco Use Prevention

Presented by

Dale O. Ritzel, Emeritus Director

Safety Center, Southern Illinois University

safety@siu.edu

Drowsy Driving

Drowsy Driving is a serious problem that leads

to thousands of automobile crashes each year.

One is at risk for drowsy driving when sleep

deprived or fatigued, driving long distances

without rest or breaks, taking medications that

increase sleepiness or drinking alcohol,

driving alone, and driving long rural boring

roads. During this presentation some

important information concerning drowsy

driving will be discussed.

Drowsy Driving Risks

The National Highway Traffic Safety

Administration estimates that

drowsiness is a factor in 100,000 police-

reported crashes each year, resulting in

76,000 injuries and 1,500 deaths

What is Drowsy Driving?

Sleepiness

+

Driving

=

Drowsy Driving

The National Sleep Foundation

explains it like this:

“When you are behind the wheel of a car,

being sleepy is dangerous. Sleepiness

slows reaction time, decreases awareness,

and impairs judgment, just like drugs or

alcohol. And, just like drugs and alcohol,

sleepiness can contribute to a collision.

Most people know how dangerous drinking

and driving is –– driving drowsy can be just

as fatal as driving drunk.”

Inattentiveness

Drowsy driving encompasses several

different components that lead to

lack of inattentiveness while driving.

This could be caused by sleep loss,

driving patterns, use of sedating

medications, untreated or

unrecognized sleep disorders or

consumption of alcohol.

Medications

Something to keep in mind regarding medications is that many cold medications contain alcohol and are not to be taken while operating large machinery such as a vehicle. You should check the labels of any prescription or over-the-counter medications that you are taking. Organic medications and supplements containing valarian root and other ingredients should be used with caution when driving as well as medications containing caffeine.

Did you know?

After staying awake for 24 hours straight, a person will be almost as impaired as if he had a blood alcohol level of .08. This is equivalent to the blood alcohol level categorized as legally drunk in Illinois.

This statement allows us to realize that sleep deprivation behind the wheel may be as deadly as driving drunk behind the wheel. Now couple sleep deprivation with alcohol consumption. You can just imagine the enormous risk associated with this combination!

One study showed on 4 hours of sleep, 1 beer can have the impact of a six-pack (Roehers et al., 1994)

Signs of Drowsiness

Yawning

Reactions slow down

Feeling stiff

Heavy eyelids

Bobbing/drooping of the head

Day dreaming

Wandering over the center line or onto the edge of the road while driving

Drowsy Driving Risks

Makes drivers less attentive

Impairs performance levels

Causes drivers to fall asleep at

the wheel

Drowsy Driving Crashes Are more likely to occur at night or in the mid-

afternoon – Research shows: Crashes occurring during the hours of 12AM

to 6AM tend to be more fatal than crashes at any other time.

– During 12AM to 6AM the timing clock in the brain is in sleep mode thus causing drowsy driving crashes to be at higher rates during these times.

– Drowsy driving persons also have a harder time staying in the center of their driving lane. Rumble strips located on the side of the road are helpful in keeping drowsy drivers from driving off of the road.

Often involve a single vehicle running off the roadway and hits a single object – Most are rear-end or head-on collisions. Sleep-related crashes

look different from alcohol-related crashes in that the driver tends not to be able to brake or take evasive measures because they are completely “out” prior to impact. (NSF)

Are more likely to occur on higher speed limits.

Drowsy Driving Crash Facts

Are more likely to result in serious

injuries

Typically involve no attempt to brake or

avoid the crash

Often involve a driver who is alone

Who is most at risk? It is important to remember all drivers are at risk of drowsy

driving. Sleep-deprived or fatigued, especially if you are driving long distances without rest breaks, driving through the night, the early afternoon, or at other times when they are normally asleep, taking medication that increases sleepiness or drinking alcohol, driving alone, driving on long, rural, boring roads or a frequent travelers, e.g., business travelers. However, the populations most at risk are: – Commercial Drivers not only drive high number of miles driven, they

also may drive during the night when the body is sleepiest

– Shift Workers are at high risk because their natural sleep patterns are disrupted by working nights or long and irregular hours (NHTSA). It is the drive home after the night shift that is likely to be a particularly dangerous one.

– Untreated sleep problems or disorders - The presence of a sleep disorder increases the risk of crashes. Disorders such as chronic insomnia, sleep apnea and narcolepsy, all of which lead to excessive daytime sleepiness, afflict an estimated 30 million Americans. Most people with sleep disorders remain undiagnosed and untreated. Sleep apnea occurs in 4% of middle-aged men and 2% of middle-aged women. The disorder is associated with a three to seven time increase in crash risk.

Also at Risk are:

Young Adults Sleep-related crashes are most common in young

people, who tend to stay up late, sleep too little, and drive at night.

Now why is it important that we address drowsy driving prevention with the high school and college population. Not only are they one of the top four populations at risk, they also are involved in a high percentage of the drowsy driving crashes. In fact, a North Carolina study indicated 55% of the individuals involved in drowsy driving crashes were 25 years of age or under and mainly male.

Illinois GDL In Illinois we have a legal way to combat drowsy driving by young

adults and it is though the Graduated Driver Licensing System. Even though drowsy driving is not specifically mentioned in the Graduated Driver Licensing System, there are a couple of component which address drowsy driving.

GDL is a three phase process starting at 15 and concluding at age 20, which covers the majority of the young adult age group at risk of drowsy driving.

– Through out phase one and part of phase two, there is an 11 p.m. curfew Sunday – Thursday and midnight Friday and Saturday.

– This prevents the teens from driving during the peak time of drowsy driving crashes which is from 12 a.m to 6 a.m.

In addition, throughout all three phases, young adults are required to maintain a legal blood alcohol content limit of .00. As we mentioned at the beginning of the presentation, when you couple sleep deprivation with alcohol consumption, it augments drowsiness and can be fatal when you mix with driving.

What is the Most Important

Way to Beat Drowsy Driving?

SLEEP

Importance of Sleep

Sleep is a biological need with predictable

patterns of sleepiness and wakefulness

We all have biological clocks which regulate

when we are sleepy.

Importance of Sleep

Everyone’s body has it’s own biological clock. It tells

us when we are hungry and sleepy. Most of our

body’s run on a daily rhythm of approximately 24

hours or in other terms, a “Circadian rhythm”

meaning “about a day”. “Morning People” feel most

alert in the day, while “night people” like to stay up

late. Teenagers and young adults have clocks that

make them want to go to bed late and sleep late the

next morning. As people get older they tend to wake

up earlier and want to go to bed earlier. NOTE: As the

students to think about what times of day they are

most alert, when they feel drowsy, do they know what

schedule their clock goes by? (AAA Foundation for

Traffic Safety)

Importance of Sleep

We have talked about how drowsy driving crashes are especially likely to happened between midnight and 6 a.m., but did you know that another dangerous time of day in which our biological clocks are programmed to be sleepy is between 1 – 5 pm also known as that “afternoon lull”. (AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety) And isn’t this the same time our teenagers/young adults are driving from school to after school activities such as jobs or extracurricular activities?!

Importance of Sleep Continued Repeatedly losing only 1 to 2 hours of sleep a night

can lead to chronic sleepiness

Loss of just one night’s sleep can lead to extreme short-term sleepiness

Sleep disorders can lead to sleepiness

Some people can get a good night’s sleep and still feel sleepy the next morning. – These people may have medical sleep disorders. Some

common sleep disorders are sleep apnea and narcolepsy.

– Sleep Apnea is a breathing disorder characterized by brief interruptions of breathing during sleep. Often times, people with sleep apnea will snore loudly, have high blood pressure, and sleepiness during the day.

– Narcolepsy is a rare sleep disorder. It’s main characteristic is excessive and overwhelming daytime sleepiness even after an adequate night time sleep.

What Can You Do to Get

Enough Sleep? Sleeping is the only way to reduce sleepiness

Young adults need 9 hours of uninterrupted

sleep per night. It is a fact that young adults

need more sleep than older adults, however,

they tend to get less because of their hectic

schedules. It is during the teen/young adult

years where their bodies are growing and need

approximately 9 hours of uninterrupted sleep

per night.

Rating Your Sleepiness

The Daytime Sleepiness Test (Epworth) helps measure a general level of daytime sleepiness

Each item describes a routine daytime situation

The scale rates the likelihood of dozing off or falling asleep during the activity

Click on the Epworth Sleepiness Scale and respond to the 8 questions and send your results with a brief paragraph on what the results mean to you to safety@siu.edu . (You can copy and paste your results in an email message).

How to Beat Drowsy Driving

On long trips plan a rest stop at least every 2 hours

Switch drivers if possible

Find a safe place and nap

Combine a caffeinated beverage like soda or coffee and a nap

Avoid alcohol and sedating medications

Take the Drowsy Driving Test

Click on the test below and send your

answers to safety@siu.edu .

Go to Drowsy Driving Test

Resources

AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety Wake Up! campaign www.aaafoundation.org

National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute Awake At the Wheel campaign www.nhlbi.nih.gov

National Sleep Foundation Drive Alert Arrive Alive campaign www.sleepfoundation.org