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It's
the
amount of alcohol that counts. For example, if
the same person drank three double martinis (3 ounces
or 90
ml of
liquor each) within an hour, the person's
BAC would be close to 0.12 percent. A person who
consumes food just before or during drinking will have a
somewhat lower BAC level,
There is
a
gender difference, too. Women generally have
a lower relative percentage of body water than
men.
Since alcohol is carried in body water, this
means
that a
woman generally will reach
a
higher BAC level than
a
man of her same body weight when each has
the same
number of drinks.
The law in many U.S. states sets
the
legal limit at a BAC
of 0.10 percent. In a growing number of U S . states, and
throughout Canada, the limit is 0.08 percent. In some
other countries, it's even lower. The BAC limit for all
commercial drivers in the United States is 0.04 percent.
The B'AC will be over 0.10 percent after three to six
drinks (in one
hour).
Of course,
as
we've seen, it
depends on how much alcohol is
in
the drinks, and how
quickly the person drinks them.
But the ability to drive is affected well below a BAC
of 0.10 percent. Research shows that the driving skills
of many people are impaired at a BAC approaching
0.05 percent, and that
the
effects are worse at night. All
drivers are impaired at BAC levels above 0.05 percent.
Statistics show
that the
chance of being in
a
collision
increases sharply for drivers who have
a
BAC of
0.05 percent or above.
A driver with a
BAC level of
0.06 percent has doubled his or her chance of having a
collision. At a BAC level of 0.10 percent, the chance of
this driver having a collision is 12 times greater; at a
level of 0.15 percent, the chance is 25 times greater!
4-4
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