We’ve all been there. “I’ve only had a couple of drinks, surely I’m safe to drive home?”
You might also be wondering if you could pass a breathalyser test the next morning, after a long night.
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Drink driving can have life-threatening consequences, so it is not recommended that you get behind the wheel after drinking.
To prevent drunk driving deaths, the Government has established strict limits on drink driving. There are approximately 7,800 of them in the UK each year.
Continue reading to learn if you can safely booze…
How long can alcohol remain in your system?
Sometimes, it feels like you have a hangover for two days. Other times you feel like you never drank.
However, neither is an accurate indicator of how much alcohol you have in your system.
Dr Paul Wallace, Chief Medical Advisor for Drinkaware states: “The amount alcohol in your bloodstream is affected by three things.
“The amount you take in, over what period of time and the speed at which your body gets rid of it.”
Your body will eliminate alcohol at about one unit per hour. However, this can vary from one person to another.
How quickly or slow your body can process alcohol will depend on your gender, size, metabolism, liver state, and whether you are stressed.
There’s no test that will give you these answers. Experts advise against driving while drunk.
Can I drink alcohol while sleeping?
Many people think that alcohol’s effects fade as you sleep.
The rate at which alcohol leaves your bloodstream is not affected by sleep.
Research by the Institute of Advance Motoring suggests that people don’t understand that just because they’ve been to sleep, it doesn’t mean they are no longer affected by alcohol.
It reads: “Many drivers who would not consider driving after a night in the pub fail to recognise the influence of alcohol on their body the next day, or simply choose to ignore its effects.”
Can I have coffee or water for speed?
Drinkaware says there’s nothing you could do to slow down the process of alcohol leaving your body.
It states: “Having a cup of coffee or a cold shower won’t do anything to get rid of the alcohol. You might feel slightly different, but you won’t have eliminated the alcohol in any way.
“The only way to eliminate alcohol from the body is to let time pass.”
You might find that drinking coffee helps you wake up and water can help you rehydrate – both are good for hangovers.
Neither of these will change the fact that alcohol is present in your body.
The same goes for the previous night. Although a pint or two of water can help your headaches the next day, it won’t alter your alcohol levels.
What is the UK drink-driving limit?
Government guidelines state that the limit in England, Wales and Northern Ireland are 80 milligrammes of alcohol per 100 millilitres of blood, 35 microgrammes per 100 millilitres of breath or 107 milligrammes per 100 millilitres of urine.
In Scotland, the limits are 50 milligrammes of alcohol per 100 millilitres of blood, 22 microgrammes per 100 millilitres of breath or 67 milligrammes per 100 millilitres of urine.
There are no ways to determine how many milligrammes a unit of alcohol will create in your bloodstream.
How much alcohol can I legally consume?
According to the Government, it is “impossible”It is impossible to determine how many drinks are safe to drink to avoid exceeding the limit because every person is different.
However, the evidence is overwhelming that alcohol can impair your ability drive.
The rule of thumb is to drink two pints regular-strength beers or two small glasses each of wine.
But this isn’t a catch-all rule.
As explained, factors like your weight, sex, metabolism and how much you’ve eaten all contribute to how your body processes alcohol, so everyone has different limits.
There is no foolproof method of drinking or staying below the limit.
Many people limit their drinking to one drink. There is no way to prove that this is excessive or not.
What happens if I have to drive in the morning because of drinking?
Drinkaware states that driving is a must if you are drinking.
If you drink, there are some things that you can do to ensure your safety behind the wheel.
Drinkaware Tips include:
- Drink single-servings of water instead of doubles
- You can also substitute alcoholic beverages with soft drinks or water
- Go for the lower strength drinks – the strength of different drinks can vary hugely, plan which brand you are going to drink to try to lower your alcohol intake
- To ensure that your body can process the alcohol before the dawn, you should stop drinking too early
Dr Wallace says; “Imagine you are drinking until three or four in the morning and you wake up at 8am. If you’ve had six or seven units, you could still have several units of alcohol in your body when you start your day.”
There are tools available Drinkaware.com will calculate the units of your favorite tipple.
The app can be downloaded to help you keep track of the units during a night out.
A home breathalyser such as the one sold by could be used to verify your safety to drive. Alcosense Before you drive on the roads.
How many units can you find in an alcoholic drink
The strength of an individual brand can affect the quantity of units contained in an alcoholic beverage.
These are roughly the units found in most popular drinks:
- 175ml glass of average-strength wine (12%) = 2.1 units
- 250ml glass wine with average strength (12%) = 3 units
- A single measure of spirit equals 1 unit
- Pint of high strength beer, cider or lager (5.2%) = 3 units
- Pint of low-strength beer, cider or lager (3.6%) = 2 units