The dangers of driving while tired (and what to do about it)
DID YOU know that driver fatigue is one of the top six human-related factors that leads to accidents on South Africa’s roads? In today’s work hard, play-hard, always-on world, many South Africans are getting by with less sleep; unwittingly increasing their chances tenfold of causing a car accident, according to Maanda Tshifularo, Head of Dialdirect.
In a recent TODAY news insert based on studies by the American Automobile Association (AAA), it was highlighted that sleeping just five to six hours a night makes you almost twice as likely to crash.
Driving with just four to five hours of sleep is the same as driving under the influence of alcohol and driving with less than four hours of sleep in a 24 hour period makes you as impaired as someone who is twice the legal alcohol limit – raising your risk of a crash 10 times.
“Driver fatigue, according to the Road Traffic Management Corporation, remains one of the top six human factors that lead to crashes on South African roads. This is such an alarming, prevalent issue [globally], that researchers have created a blood test for drowsy driving. When it’s eventually introduced, this technology could help police identify suspected drowsy drivers in road traffic accidents.”
Yes, that’s right, a blood test might be able to tell if you’ve been burning the candle on both ends.
During a unique study from the Sleep Research Centre at the University of Surrey, led by Professor DerkJan Dijk, 36 participants skipped one night of sleep. During this 40-hour period of sleep deprivation, blood samples were taken and changes in the expression levels of thousands of genes were measured.
A machine learning algorithm identified a subset of 68 genes and with 92% accuracy could detect whether a sample was from a sleep-deprived or well-rested person. This breakthrough discovery paves the way for the blood test that will be able to assess if a driver was sleep deprived.
Dr Emma Laing, a senior lecturer in Bioinformatics at the University of Surrey, says: “We all know that insufficient sleep poses a significant risk to our physical and mental health, particularly over a period of time. However, it is difficult to independently assess how much sleep a person has had, making it difficult for the police to know if drivers were fit to drive, or for employers to know if staff are fit for work.”
Simon Archer, Professor of Molecular Biology of Sleep at the University of Surrey, adds: “Identifying these biomarkers is the first step to developing a test which can accurately calculate how much sleep an individual has had. The very existence of such biomarkers in the blood after only a period of 24-hour wakefulness shows the physiological impact a lack of sleep can have on our body.”
Professor Derk-Jan Dijk, Director Surrey Sleep Research Centre at the University of Surrey, notes: “This is a test for acute total sleep loss; the next step is to identify biomarkers for chronic insufficient sleep, which we know to be associated with adverse health outcomes.”
So, to ensure you are driving in an alert and responsive state, here are a few tips to stay refreshed behind the steering wheel.
WARNING SIGNS THAT YOU ARE FATIGUED
● You yawn often
● Your movements are slower and less frequent
● It’s difficult to focus your eyesight, or to keep your eyes open
● You have trouble focusing your thoughts or you find yourself daydreaming
● You feel like you ‘zoned out’ for a moment before being jolted back to reality
● You can’t remember recent happenings on the road clearly
● You drift from your lane or disobey the rules of the road.
TIPS TO PREVENT YOU FROM DRIVING WHILE TIRED
Recharge properly: Get enough sleep. Seven to nine hours of good sleep is recommended for adults. This is especially important prior to long road trips.
Live healthy: Keep your body and mind in shape by maintaining a healthy diet and exercise plan. Drink lots of water, eat healthy foods and take the necessary vitamin and mineral supplements. Avoid alcohol, excessive sugar and caffeine.
Downtime driving: Avoid driving during your body’s downtime, when it’s most used to being asleep. For
most people, this is between 2am and 6am.
Abnormal load: Avoid having large meals before driving, as this could lead to increased drowsiness.
Have a game plan: When you’re travelling far, or risk driving at a time that you might be tired, plan frequent rest stops – at least one every two hours - into your trip or rather plan to sleep over.
STOP: If you are tired behind the wheel, don’t try to “push through it”. Find a safe place to stop and refresh, stretch, take a walk to get circulation going, or to take a short nap.
Energy patch-up: Although they promote short-term alertness, be wary of relying on coffee, energy drinks or other “boosts” to keep you awake. These take between 30 to 50 minutes to take full effect and can often see your energy and alertness levels crash dramatically as they wear out.
Quick fixes: Cooling the temperature inside your vehicle, opening your window a bit to let in fresh air or listening to music that lifts your spirits can provide short-term relief to fatigue.
Tap out: When in need, have a driving partner who can take the wheel when you’re too tired.
“A ‘sleep when you’re dead’ way of living is nothing to aspire to or be proud of,” Tshifularo notes.
“SA motorists owe it to themselves and to their loved ones to take fatigue more seriously, to be more vigilant, should things go awry on the road, particularly with the festive season that’s very quickly approaching.”