
Not Getting Enough Sleep Is Like Driving Drunk, Warns AAA
One in five fatal car crashes involves sleep-deprived drivers, according to AAA. “Naps are not just for babies,” said Jake Nelson, AAA’s Director of Traffic Safety Advocacy and Research. “If we’ve earned only four or five hours of sleep in a night, the odds of you getting into a car crash are the same as driving legally drunk due to alcohol,” he adds.
Just how widespread is the problem of drowsy driving? One in three drivers surveyed admitted to driving even though they struggled to keep their eyes open. More than a third of U.S. adults are getting less than the recommended seven hours of sleep a night, according to a February report by the CDC, which has called insufficient sleep a “public health problem.”
New study puts the spotlight on drowsy driving
No one was particularly surprised that driving sleep-deprived increased the risk of a crash, but researchers say they were shocked at the impact of missing just one hour of sleep a night. The study found that falling one to two hours short of the recommended seven hours of sleep per night doubles the chances of getting into a car accident. The AAA recommends:- Scheduling travel during normal waking hours
- Taking a 15-20 minute “powernap” break for every two hours of driving
- Avoiding heavy foods and medications that cause drowsiness before driving
- Traveling with an alert passenger and taking turns behind the wheel