"The Twilight Zone"
Teen Safety Week
Drowsy Driving Presentation
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" The Drowsy Zone "
" The Drowsy Zone "
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Fact Sheet
Drowsy Driving
Sleepiness and driving is a dangerous combination. Most people are aware of the dangers of drinking and driving but don’t realize that drowsy driving can be just as fatal. Like alcohol, sleepiness slows reaction time, decreases awareness, impairs judgment and increases your risk of crashing.
Unlike alcohol-related crashes, no blood, breath, or other objective test exists to measure sleepiness behind the wheel. This makes it more difficult to identify drowsiness as a crash factor.
Drowsy Driving = Impaired Driving.
Sleepiness or Fatigue
Impairs reaction time, judgment and vision. Information processing, and short-term memory deficit. Decreases performance, vigilance and motivation. Increases moodiness and aggressive behaviors.
Specific At-Risk Groups
Young people-especially males under age 26.
Shift workers and people with long work hours– Night shift workers have 6 times increased risk. Rotating shift workers and people exceeding a 60-hour work week need to be particularly careful.
Commercial drivers-especially long-haul drivers - At least 15% of all heavy truck crashes involve fatigue.
People with undiagnosed or untreated sleep disorders - Untreated obstructive sleep apnea persons have been shown to have up to seven times increased risk of falling asleep at the wheel.
Business travelers - who spend many hours driving, may be jet lagged or change time-zones.
Drowsy Driving
Sleepiness and driving is a dangerous combination. Most people are aware of the dangers of drinking and driving but don’t realize that drowsy driving can be just as fatal. Like alcohol, sleepiness slows reaction time, decreases awareness, impairs judgment and increases your risk of crashing.
Unlike alcohol-related crashes, no blood, breath, or other objective test exists to measure sleepiness behind the wheel. This makes it more difficult to identify drowsiness as a crash factor.
Drowsy Driving = Impaired Driving.
Sleepiness or Fatigue
Impairs reaction time, judgment and vision. Information processing, and short-term memory deficit. Decreases performance, vigilance and motivation. Increases moodiness and aggressive behaviors.
Specific At-Risk Groups
Young people-especially males under age 26.
Shift workers and people with long work hours– Night shift workers have 6 times increased risk. Rotating shift workers and people exceeding a 60-hour work week need to be particularly careful.
Commercial drivers-especially long-haul drivers - At least 15% of all heavy truck crashes involve fatigue.
People with undiagnosed or untreated sleep disorders - Untreated obstructive sleep apnea persons have been shown to have up to seven times increased risk of falling asleep at the wheel.
Business travelers - who spend many hours driving, may be jet lagged or change time-zones.
How Sleepy Are You?
Use this questionnaire to measure your general level of daytime sleepiness. Answers are rated on a reliable scale called the Epworth Sleepiness Scale (ESS). Each item describes a routine situation. Use the scale below to rate the likelihood that you would doze off or fall asleep during that activity.
0 1 2 3
Would never doze slight chance of dozing moderate chance of dozing high chance of dozing
Warning Signs
______ Sitting & Reading Watching Television
______ Sitting inactive in a public place, for example, a theater or meeting
______ As a passenger in a car for an hour without a break
______ Lying down to rest in the afternoon
______ Sitting & talking to someone
______ In a car, while stopped in traffic
______ Sitting quietly after lunch (when you’ve had no alcohol)
If your total is 10 or higher, consider discussing these results with your physician or other health care provider. Keeping a sleep diary for two weeks or longer can help you identify behaviors that might contribute to your fatigue. *See last page for Sleepiness Diary.
Are You at Risk?
Drowsy Driving
Sleepiness and driving is a dangerous combination. Most people are aware of the dangers of drinking and driving but don’t realize that drowsy driving can be just as fatal. Like alcohol, sleepiness slows reaction time, decreases awareness, impairs judgment and increases your risk of crashing.
Before you drive, consider whether you are:
Unlike alcohol-related crashes, no blood, breath, or other objective test exists to measure how lack of sleep can affect your performance - just that it does!
Drowsy Driving
Sleepiness and driving is a dangerous combination. Most people are aware of the dangers of drinking and driving but don’t realize that drowsy driving can be just as fatal. Like alcohol, sleepiness slows reaction time, decreases awareness, impairs judgment and increases your risk of crashing.
Before you drive, consider whether you are:
- Sleep-deprived or fatigued (6 hours of sleep or less triples your risk)
- Suffering from sleep loss (insomnia), poor quality sleep, or a sleep debt
- Driving long distances without proper rest breaks
- Driving through the night, mid-afternoon or when you would normally be asleep
- Taking sedating medications (antidepressants, cold tablets, antihistamines)
- Working more than 60 hours a week (increases your risk by 40%)
- Working more than one job, and your main job involves shift work
- Drinking even small amounts of alcohol
- Driving alone or on a long, rural, dark or boring road
- Flying, changing time zone?
Unlike alcohol-related crashes, no blood, breath, or other objective test exists to measure how lack of sleep can affect your performance - just that it does!
