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June 22, 2006 -- Sleepy drivers are a hazard to themselves and everyone else on the road, a new study shows.
The study's take-home message: If you're sleepy, "stop driving and sleep or let someone else drive," write the researchers.
They included Hermann Nabi, PhD, of France's national institute of health and medical research (Institut National de la Sant?t de la Recherche M?cale, or INSERM). Their study appears in BMJ Online First.
"Our results suggest that drivers are aware that they are sleepy when driving but do not act accordingly," write Nabi and colleagues. "Drivers may either underestimate the impact of sleepiness on their driving performance or overestimate their capacity to fight sleepiness."
Either way, the bottom line is the same: Don't get behind the wheel when you're sleepy.
Drowsy Driving Data
The study included more than 13,600 middle-aged adults who worked for or had recently retired from France's national gas and electric company. They had signed up for a long-term health study.
In 2001, participants took a survey that included questions about their driving habits. One of the questions was, "In the past 12 months, have you ever driven while sleepy?"
Their answers:
The survey also covered other risky driving habits including speeding and talking on a cell phone while driving.
Crash Record
Every year through 2003, participants completed questionnaires about any accidents they'd had in the previous year. Serious crashes were defined as those requiring medical consultation.
About 300 participants didn't fill out all of those questionnaires. So the researchers focused on the nearly 13,300 people with complete data.
People who reported driving while sleepy "a few times" on the 2001 survey were 50% more likely to have a serious crash in the next three years, compared with those who reported no sleepy driving.
Frequent drowsy drivers were even more likely to have a serious crash.
Those who noted driving while sleepy "once a month or more" on the 2001 survey nearly tripled their risk of having a serious crash in the next three years, compared with wide-awake drivers.
Reported sleep disorderssleep disorders and other medical conditions didn't explain the findings, note Nabi and colleagues. The researchers note that while self-reported data isn't always perfect, that probably wasn't a big problem in this study.
SOURCES: Nabi, H. BMJ Online First, June 23, 2006. News release, BMJ.