Why Do People Drink and Drive? A Quest to Find Answers

Why Do People Drink and Drive? A Quest to Find Answers

29 people die every day in the United States as a result of alcohol-impaired driving. Many more sustain serious injuries.

If you or anyone close to you has never been a victim of drunk-driving, you might not grasp just how this habit destroys lives and ruins families. But even in a rational, developed, and civilized society like ours, you’d think people will know better. Instead, about 4.2 million people often drive when drunk.

These leads us to this question: just why do people drink and drive?

In this article, we attempt to find the answers. Come with us!

Misplaced Trust in One’s Driving Abilities

A primary reason people drink and drive is they have a misplaced belief in their skills behind the wheel. This belief develops over time.

Let’s use an illustration to drive this point home.

Take a driver, Kyle.

Kyle started the habit of drinking and driving 3 years ago. First Kyle took a glass of wine and drove home. A couple of weeks later the number of glasses increased to 3, and they still drove home and arrived without incident. Gradually, Kyle drunk more and more alcohol and still managed to drive home “safely.”

After several instances of drunk driving without causing an accident, one can easily think that they’re competent behind the wheel – even when under the influence.

Sober Enough to Drive?

In most states, the legal alcohol limit is 0.08 percent blood alcohol content.

See also  Why Have a Will? 5 Reasons Even Young People Should Have Advance Directives

Now, there’s a general rule of thumb that it takes women 3 drinks and men 4 drinks an hour to reach this limit.

In truth, though, our bodies metabolize alcohol differently, often depending on factors such as your weight, whether you’re on medications, and whether you’re on an empty or full stomach.

If you go by the rule of thumb, or if you consume one or two drinks, you could assume you’re below or within the legal alcohol limit, and thus pass yourself sober enough to drive.

You should never make such assumptions. Even one drink can be enough to impair your judgment.

Easy Access to Legal Services

You don’t have to be in an accident to feel the consequences of drunk driving.

If you’re pulled over by the police and it’s established you’re over the BAC limit, you’ll be slapped with a DUI ticket. If you’re a repeat offender, a suspended license and time behind bars are all possible consequences.

But, why lose sleep about these consequences when you can hire a DUI lawyer like ervinkibrialaw.com/dc-dui-attorney/ to get you off the hook?

Yes, easy access to legal service is one of the reasons some drivers decide to get behind the wheel when under the influence of alcohol. That said, bear in mind that the availability of legal services for DUI suspects isn’t a bad thing. Everyone has a right to legal defense.

Why Do People Drink and Drive? Now You Know!

It takes lots of scientific research to understand what people do the things they do. But when it comes to drunk driving, the reasons are easy to find.

See also  10 Tips for Healthy Skin in Winter

So if you’ve been asking “why do people drink and drive?” we’re glad to report it’s nothing to do with their genetical makeup or anything out of their control. It’s a matter of making poor, irresponsible decisions. Don’t be like these people.

Keep reading our blog for more insights on a range of topics, from home care to healthcare and fitness.