Drowsy Driving - Stay Alert, Arrive Alive » fatigue

Getting Enough Sleep Can Save Your Life on the Roads

sleepfoundation — Tue, 25 May 2010 17:11:13 +0000

Less than half of Americans say they get a good night’s sleep every night. Combine excessive sleepiness with an automobile, a long drive, and the one of the heaviest travel weekends of the year, and our risk for a fall-asleep crash increases significantly. In fact, 28% of American drivers have admitted to falling asleep at the wheel, according to a recent National Sleep Foundation poll, and more than half (54%) said they have driven while drowsy.

“People think they can judge the precise time they are too tired and don’t realize that ‘drowsy driving’ is a serious danger,” says David Cloud, CEO of the National Sleep Foundation. “They don’t know that it’s possible to fall into a 3-4 second microsleep without realizing it. Traveling at 65 MPH, that’s enough time to travel the length of a football field basically unconscious.”

Even if you manage to stay awake, sleepiness causes slower reaction times, vision impairment, lapses in judgment and delays in processing information, which are all critical elements for safe driving practices. “Getting enough sleep can literally save your life,” adds Cloud.

Prevent a fall-asleep crash by getting enough sleep the night before and by knowing the warning signs of sleepiness and using appropriate countermeasures.

Warning Signs: Feeling Sleepy? Stop Driving!

If you start to do the following, it’s time to get off the road. Find a safe place to pull over:

Have problems focusing, blink frequently and/or have heavy eyelids;
Drift from your lane, swerve, tailgate and/or hit rumble strips;
Have trouble remembering the last few miles driven;
Miss exits or traffic signs;
Have trouble keeping your head up;
Yawn repeatedly;
Or finding yourself rolling down the windows or turning up the radio.

National Sleep Foundation’s Countermeasures to Prevent Fall-Asleep Crashes

Get a good night’s sleep before you hit the road. You’ll want to be alert for the drive, so be sure to get adequate sleep (seven to nine hours) the night before you go.
Don’t be too rushed to arrive at your destination. Many drivers try to maximize the holiday weekend by driving at night or without stopping for breaks. It’s better to allow the time to drive alert and arrive alive.
Use the buddy system. Just as you should not swim alone, avoid driving alone for long distances. A buddy who remains awake for the journey can take a turn behind the wheel and help identify the warning signs of fatigue.
Take a break every 100 miles or 2 hours. Do something to refresh yourself like getting a snack, switching drivers, or going for a run.
Take a nap—find a safe place to take a 15 to 20-minute nap, if you think you might fall asleep. Be cautious about excessive drowsiness after waking up.
Avoid alcohol and medications that cause drowsiness as a side-effect.
Avoid driving at times when you would normally be asleep.
Consume caffeine. The equivalent of two cups of coffee can increase alertness for several hours.

For more information about sleep and safety, visit the National Sleep Foundation’s Web site at sleepfoundation.org.

Advertisement: The National Sleep Foundation neither control nor endorse the advertisements, items or Websites featured in the advertisers links below.

People with Apnea More Vulnerable to Effects of Alcohol

sleepfoundation — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 18:20:50 +0000

Drinking and driving is always dangerous. Add a life-threatening sleep disorder and you have a recipe for disaster. According to a study in the Annals of Internal Medicine, patients with obstructive sleep apnea are more vulnerable than healthy people to the effects of alcohol while driving. The study, conducted by researchers at the Adelaide Institute for Sleep Health in Australia, followed 38 untreated patients with sleep apnea and 20 control participants. The participants were either allowed to sleep unrestricted, had their sleep restricted to four hours or ingested enough vodka to achieve a blood alcohol level of 0.05 g/dL. They then took part in a driving simulator that measured steering deviation, crashes and braking reaction time. The study found that patients with sleep apnea experienced a 40 percent increase in steering deviation compared with the control group. Patients with sleep apnea also crashed more frequently than control participants after normal sleep and even more after restricted sleep or alcohol consumption compared with the control group. If left untreated, symptoms of sleep apnea can include disturbed sleep and excessive sleepiness during the day. If you suspect you may have sleep apnea, the first thing to do is see your doctor.

Read the abstract.
Learn more about Obstructive Sleep Apnea and Sleep.

Today Show Looks at Drowsy Teen Drivers

sleepfoundation — Mon, 14 Sep 2009 19:20:00 +0000

The Today Show recently featured a segment on drowsy driving among teenagers. According to the National Sleep Foundation’s 2006 Sleep in America poll, 51 percent of all adolescents who drive reported that they had driven drowsy at least once in the past year. Among those adolescents, 5 percent had nodded off or fallen asleep while driving in the past year, and 27 percent of those respondents had an accident or near accident due to drowsiness while driving. The Today Show segment notes that fatigue is a factor in about 100,000 crashes every year, most involving young drivers. National Sleep Foundation Chairman Thomas J. Balkin, PhD, told the Today Show, “In many ways, driving drowsy is very much like driving drunk.” According to Balkin, drowsiness — like alcohol — can severely impair a driver’s reflexes, judgment and awareness.

Learn more about driving and fatigue at DrowsyDriving.org.

NTSB Makes Recommendations on Sleep Apnea

sleepfoundation — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 19:33:07 +0000

The National Transportation Safety Board has issued six recommendations to the Federal Aviation Agency regarding pilot fatigue and obstructive sleep apnea after concluding an investigation of two pilots who fell asleep during a February 2008 flight. The pilots were flying from Honolulu to Hilo, Hawaii, when they fell asleep and flew past the plane’s destination, traveling another 26 miles before waking up. In a letter to the FAA dated Aug. 7, NTSB ruled the flight crew’s recent shift schedules and the captain’s undiagnosed obstructive sleep apnea contributed to the incident. Obstructive sleep apnea is a disorder in which breathing is briefly and repeatedly interrupted during sleep. The “apnea” in sleep apnea refers to a breathing pause that lasts at least 10 seconds. In the letter, NTSB makes the following recommendations:

Pilots should be screened for sleep disorders during medical certification.
More research should be conducted on fatigue in short-haul flight operations.
Any information from research on fatigue should be made available to flight crews working short-haul flights.
Guidance from research should be included in operators’ operating specifications.
The FAA should implement a program to identify pilots at high risk for sleep apnea.
Guidance should be made available for pilots, employers and physicians regarding the identification and treatment of individuals at high risk of sleep apnea.

Read NTSB’s recommendations, or learn more about sleep apnea.

Post Article Examines ‘Crash Pads’

sleepfoundation — Mon, 10 Aug 2009 19:42:00 +0000

A recent article in the Washington Post looked at crash pads, makeshift homes used as an inexpensive housing option for regional airline flight crews struggling to pay rent away from home. Crash pad owners told the Post that these dorm-like housing arrangements — accommodating 10 to 30 people at one time — are concentrated in cities with major airline operations fed by regional carriers. The article states that most crash pad tenants claim to have sleep issues and abnormal body clocks, attributed to sharing a room with co-workers and their constantly changing flight schedules. Sleep research has shown that sleeping too little can not only inhibit your productivity and ability to remember and consolidate information, but lack of sleep can also lead to serious health consequences and jeopardize your safety and the safety of individuals around you. Historic tragedies have been linked to fatigue-related human error, among them the Exxon Valdez oil spill and the NASA Challenger shuttle explosion. According to the Department of Transportation, the last six fatal commercial aviation accidents in the U.S. involved regional air carriers, citing excessive pilot fatigue as a contributing factor.

Read the Post article.
Read about the Sleep-Wake Cycle: Its Physiology and Impact on Health.

Countermeasures: Rumble Strips

sleepfoundation — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 19:33:44 +0000

If you hit a shoulder rumble strip, pull off the road as soon as possible. Rumble strips are deep grooves placed on high-speed roads utilized by highway authorities to alert drowsy drivers and prevent them from veering off the roadway. They were first introduced on the New Jersey Turnpike in 1952 and have proven to be one of the most effective measures in decreasing drowsy driving.

Countermeasures: Caffeine

sleepfoundation — Tue, 14 Jul 2009 18:43:15 +0000

If you become drowsy while driving, recognize that you are in danger of falling asleep and pull over. Coffee or another type of caffeine drink can promote short-term alertness, if needed. Just be aware that it takes about 30 minutes for caffeine to enter the bloodstream.

Caffeine is also available in soft drinks, chewing gum and tablets. Caffeine and a nap together offer short-term benefits. Keep in mind that caffeine won’t have much of an effect on people who consume it regularly.

Sleepless on Pennsylvania Avenue

sleepfoundation — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 18:15:19 +0000

If you think your work schedule is demanding, try being an adviser for the president. A recent article in the Washington Post examined the hectic schedules of members of President Obama’s Administration, including their bouts with sleepless nights and fatigue. According to the Post, grueling schedules aren’t anything new at the Oval Office. Previous administrations had their share of 18- to 20-hour work days. However, a study conducted for British Parliament concluded that the mental fatigue resulting from working those kinds of hours can affect “cognitive performance, leading to errors of judgment, microsleeps (lasting for seconds or minutes), mood swings and poor motivation,” according to the Post. Short sleep duration also is linked with an increased risk of motor vehicle accidents, an increase in body mass index, an increased risk of diabetes and heart problems, an increased risk for psychiatric conditions including depression and substance abuse, and a decreased ability to pay attention, react to signals or remember new information. According to the Post, staff members are starting to take breaks. But they’re going to need more than a weekend getaway to catch up on their sleep.

Read the article.
Learn more about How Much Sleep Do We Really Need?

New Rules Needed to Reduce Pilot Fatigue

sleepfoundation — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 18:06:18 +0000

The Federal Aviation Administration stated on Wednesday that recommendations for new rules aimed at limiting pilot fatigue need to be submitted by Sept. 1, according to a recent USA Today article. In a recent string of crashes — including the accident in Buffalo, NY, last February that killed 50 — pilots stated they had not received a full night’s sleep. Airlines are currently operating under 50-year-old rules allowing pilots to fly up to eight hours a day. Including ground time between flights, their day can extend up to 16 hours. Curtis Graeber, a researcher of pilot fatigue for nearly 30 years and a National Sleep Foundation board member, told USA Today that research is a better predictor of how long pilots should work rather than limiting hours. Graeber stated factors that should be considered by the governing bodies, including how many days in a row a pilot may work and allowing for an adequate rest period to ensure pilots have a good night’s sleep. Some believe that a consensus between airlines and pilot unions will prove challenging.

Read the USA Today article.

Caffeine, Technology Affecting Teens’ Ability to Stay Alert

sleepfoundation — Tue, 02 Jun 2009 20:31:29 +0000

The use of nighttime media-related technology and a reliance on caffeinated beverages are affecting teens’ ability to stay alert and fully functional throughout the day, according to a study in the journal Pediatrics. Researchers asked subjects, middle and high school students aged 12 to 18 years old from a suburb of Philadelphia, about their sleep behavior, technology use and caffeine intake. According to the study, one-third of the students reported falling asleep during school and caffeine consumption among students who fell asleep was 76 percent higher. Teens typically need about 9 1/4 hours of sleep each night to function best; although for some, 8 1/2 hours is enough. Here’s a little advice for teens out there: Try to avoid the TV, computer and telephone in the hour before you go to bed. Stick to quiet, calm activities, and you’ll fall asleep much more easily!

Read the study abstract.
Learn more about Teens and Sleep.