Tips to prevent drunk driving this Festive Season
Quick-fix solutions do not exist.
It’s that time of the year again, and all of us are looking forward to enjoying the festive season with our family and friends.
With it, comes the work parties, the house parties, the Christmas parties and then the New Year’s Eve parties, and with those come ample invitation to have a drink or two and just be merry over the next few weeks.
Remember, the statistics surrounding the fatalities on South African during the festive season are as familiar as they are depressing.
Drunk Driving is one of the biggest threats to Road Safety in South Africa. The legal blood alcohol limit in South Africa is 0.05g per 100ml. Research indicates that 50 percent of people who die on the roads have a blood-alcohol concentration above 0.05 grams per 100 millilitres. In simple terms, this means that 2 drinks over the space of 1 hour will put you over the limit.
Here are some tips to prevent driving under the influence this festive season:
- Know your limit
Most people find that no more than one drink an hour will keep them in control of the situation and avoid drunkenness. The legal limit in South Africa is equal to two thirds of a beer or spirit cooler with 5% alcohol content. Or 75ml of red or white wine per hour with an alcohol content of 12% to 14%. Or up to one 25ml tot of whisky or brandy per hour.
- Eat before you drink
No matter how much you eat while drinking alcohol – you are still going to get drunk. Drinking on an empty stomach will just get you drunk quicker, eating high protein foods will help to slow the absorption of alcohol into the circulatory system.
- Know how you are getting home
There are a few options: the easiest is to use a driver service. You can appoint a designated driver before you go out, so you have a person who will avoid drinking alcohol that night and get you home safely.
- Don’t believe the myths
Quick-fix solutions do not exist. Drinking coffee, getting fresh air or dinking a litre of water will not sober you up. Only time will remove alcohol from your system, and restricting yourself to only one unit per hour will give your body the time it needs to stay sober in the eyes of the law.
