February 02, 2017
Too Drunk to Drive? Watch Your BAC On a Night Out
Making sure you are sober enough to drive is a big responsibility. If you are already intoxicated, you may feel great but once behind the wheel disaster could strike. To prevent injuries, death or prison it is best to make sure you are completely sober before getting behind the wheel. Below are a few ways you can stay on top of your intake.
Blood Alcohol Content
If a man of 160 lbs has four drinks, he will be legally intoxicated with a BAC of .09. A woman of 160 lbs would only have to have three drinks before getting the same BAC reading. As a general rule, if you have a drink and wait an hour after each you can subtract .015 from your initial blood alcohol reading. If you can do this math in your head, you are probably sober. For a full chart, click here.
Keep An Eye On Your Intake
One drink in the U.S. is 5 oz of wine, 12 oz of beer or 1.5 oz of 80-proof liquor, they all have the same amount of ethanol or, 14 grams of pure alcohol. Tolerance can differ drastically based on age, height, weight, gender and how much you’ve had to eat. It’s also pretty easy to get caught up in the fun of being out with friends, especially if they are buying. If you can’t remember how many you’ve had, stop and just drink water.
Use a Portable Breathalyzer
There are few few portable breathalyzers on the market now, two of which have accompanying apps that can help you moderate and check your intake throughout the night. Alcohoot, Breathometer, and BACtrack are a few portable breathalyzer options. Alcohoot and Breathometer connect to phone apps and, as well as monitoring alcohol level, will help you locate lodging or taxis nearby.