Hangover affects driving ability 'as much as being drunk'

A HANGOVER following a night of heavy drinking can impair driving performance as much as driving under the influence of alcohol, according to new research.

Scientists at universities in the UK and the Netherlands found that the effects of a night's heavy drinking last longer than a measurable blood alcohol concentration and that hangover immunity is largely a myth.

In research conducted at the University of the West of England, participants who had been drinking the night before undertook a 20-minute simulation of driving in a mixed urban and rural setting.

Significant increases in speed variability, reaction time, driving errors and deviation from driving position were recorded when the participants were hung-over, the study found.

Associate Professor Chris Alford, who led the Bristol-based study, said that motorists should be warned of the dangers of driving while hungover as part of driver safety campaigns.

"This was a naturalistic design of study, aiming to better reflect what happens in real life when people go to work the next day after drinking," he said.

"The significant impairments seen here, after a relatively short driving duration reflecting a typical commute to work and using a more mentally demanding driving environment, represent a new finding.

"This simulation represented a situation many people can relate to. They may already be aware of not driving home after a night out drinking, but we also need to advise them to plan for the next day so they won't be driving to work impaired."

In the larger, complementary Dutch study at Utrecht University, healthy volunteers participated in simulated one hour motorway driving tests the night after a drinking session averaging about 10 alcoholic drinks.

Compared to the same tests after a night of not drinking, the results showed a hangover could significantly increase the number of lapses in attention and driving course deviations or weaving.

The tests were performed after the participants' blood alcohol concentration had returned to zero, although their level of driving impairment was similar to being over the alcohol limit for driving in Holland.

The types of hangover symptoms people experience include thirst and dehydration, drowsiness and fatigue, headache and problems concentrating, according to other research.

While some people claim to be immune to developing a hangover, a Canadian study of almost 800 university students suggests that the vast majority of drinkers are susceptible and the impact is largely related to the degree of alcohol intoxication.

The findings of the two studies were presented at the Australasian Professional Society on Alcohol and other Drugs (APSAD) 2013 Conference.

Pete Williams, from the RAC, said: "The first thing to bear in mind is that if you've been drinking the night before you may still be over the drink-drive limit in the morning.

"Police recently reported a 4% year-on-year increase in 2012 of people being arrested for being over the limit the morning after.

"We strongly urge anybody thinking about enjoying a drink this Christmas to leave the car at home and given the results revealed in this study which suggest that a hangover can have a similar negative effect on a motorist's ability to drive, people should either use public transport or get a lift from someone who isn't hung over instead of driving themselves the next morning."

By Rod Minchin, Press Association