11 Facts About Driving Under the Influence

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1. Impairment is not reliant upon the type of alcohol consumed, rather the number of drinks over a certain period of time. Despite myths and misconceptions, coffee, a cold shower, or exercise will not make a person more sober; only time will.^[Bacharach, Samuel B., Peter Bamberger, and Michal Biron. "Alcohol Consumption And Workplace Absenteeism: The Moderating Effect Of Social Support.."Journal of Applied Psychology 95, no. 2 (2010): 334-348. Accessed February 25, 2014.]
2. On average, a drunk driver will drive 80 times under the influence before their first arrest.^[Centers for Disease Control. “Vital Signs: Alcohol-Impaired Driving Among Adults — United States, 2010.” Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. October 4, 2011]
3. Every 51 minutes in America, someone is killed in a drunk driving crash. That equates to 27 people every day. Offer to be your parents’ designated driver to ensure that everybody gets home safe. Sign up for Parents Ride Shotty.^[Dept of Transportation (US), National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). Traffic Safety Facts 2013 Data: Alcohol-Impaired Driving. Washington (DC): NHTSA; 2014 Accessed 2015 May 18]
4. For drivers under 21, the U.S. has a No Tolerance policy that does not allow any alcohol to be in the blood system while behind the wheel. The consequences could include expensive fines, loss of license or jail.^[White, Jesse. "Zero Tolerance/Underage Drinking." DRIVER SERVICES. Accessed February 26, 2014, http://www.cyberdriveillinois.com/departments/drivers/traffic_safety/DUI/uselose.html.]
5. Someone is injured in a drunk driving incident every 120 seconds.^[The Economic and Societal Impact Of Motor Vehicle Crashes, 2010.” National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, May 2014, DOT HS 812 013. http://www-nrd.nhtsa.dot.gov/Pubs/812013.pdf]
6. In 2011, 9,878 people were victims of drunk drivers.^[The Economic and Societal Impact Of Motor Vehicle Crashes, 2010.” National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, May 2014, DOT HS 812 013. http://www-nrd.nhtsa.dot.gov/Pubs/812013.pdf]
7. Between 50 to 75% of the people who have had their licenses revoked due to driving under the influence drive illegally without their license.^[Loyola University. "Drunk Driving Statistics & Facts." Loyola University Medical Center Injury Prevention Program. Accessed February 26, 2014, http://www.stritch.luc.edu/depts/injprev/transprt/tran1-06.htm.]
8. Traffic accidents are the leading cause of death for teens, and roughly 1/3 of these accidents involve alcohol or another substance.^[Blum MD, MPH, PhD, Robert Wm., and Farah Qureshi, MHS. "Morbidity and Mortality among Adolescents and Young Adults in the United States." Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. Accessed February 26, 2014, http://www.jhsph.edu/research/centers-and-institutes/center-for-adolescent-health/az/_images/US%20Fact%20Sheet_FINAL.pdf.]
9. Since the early 1980s, alcohol-related traffic deaths per population have been cut in half with the greatest proportional declines among persons 16-20 years old.^["Alcohol-Related Traffic Deaths" National Institute of Health. Accessed October 5th, 2015, http://report.nih.gov/nihfactsheets/Pdfs/AlcoholRelatedTrafficDeaths(NIAAA).pdf]
10. In 2010, of the fatalities among children ages 14 and younger, 17 percent occurred in alcohol impaired-driving crashes.^["Traffic Safety Facts:2010 Data." National Highway Sater Administration. Accessed October 6th, 2015, http://www-nrd.nhtsa.dot.gov/Pubs/811606.pdf]
11. Kids and teens who get involved with alcohol at a young age are 7 times more likely to be involved in an alcohol-related crash in their lives.^[National Institutes of Health. "Underage Drinking." he National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA). Accessed February 26, 2014, http://pubs.niaaa.nih.gov/publications/AA67/AA67.htm.]