The declining death rate was noted in all but 18 states, with approximately 12,998 fatal car crashes related to alcohol in 2007 – a figure down nearly 500 deaths from 2006.

At the time of the report, Mothers Against Drunk Driving made a national plea for new legislation that would require ignition-interlocking devices for all drivers who are convicted of drunk driving. The national activist organization also reported that South Carolina and Wisconsin both saw rising numbers of auto deaths related to drunk driving, and pointed to ineffective state laws as one cause.

The overall drop represents a gradual decline of drunk-driving fatalities – specifically, more than 40 percent—that began in 1982. Stricter laws for drunk driving offenders and strategic marketing campaigns are cited in connection with the declining number of deaths.

Jacob Nelson, director of road safety policies and research for AAA auto, credits the promotion of a straightforward message to curbing drunk driving. He says the key is to let people know that if they choose to drive while intoxicated, they will likely get caught.

The largest drop in drunk driving deaths occurred in Vermont, where the fatalities fell 45 percent between 2007 and 2008. However, in the Midwest, Kansas saw a rise in deadly drunk driving accidents – showing an increase of 36 percent. Kansas officials defend the rise, saying one year of climbing numbers does not represent the drop in alcohol-related fatalities for two prior years.
Some states are using technological tools like social media to curb drunk driving, with messages going out on Twitter warning against the behavior. In Colorado, an application for the iPhone was developed for downloading. The application is meant to help a driver estimate their level of blood-alcohol content. In Washington, messages against drunk driving were programmed into popular video game software.
Aggressive checkpoints managed by law enforcement officials are also noted as an effective deterrent. Drunk driving is an expensive problem, according to Allstate Insurance Company, who offers a price range for the behavior of 21 to 24 billion dollars for taxpayers each year.

Encouraging statistics also emerged toward young adult drinking and driving. Representatives for MADD said deadly car accidents related to alcohol fell 15 percent for young adults, a decline greater than other demographic groups.
Though state penalties differ for drunk driving across the nation, universal measures to continue the downward trend of drunk driving fatalities are actively promoted by safety officials and social groups like MADD. With steps like more sobriety checkpoints, technology devices that prevent drunk drivers’ vehicles from operating if they’ve been drinking, and additional measures that capture public attention, thousands of lives could be saved.
 

Throughout the addiction and treatment industries, it is understood that an individual never truly recovers from alcoholism. An addiction to the substance can be overcome, but the individual is always susceptible to relapse. This can be an issue for those who need a liver transplant due to excessive alcohol use.

A recent Science Daily release focused on the importance of periods of abstinence and addiction treatment before transplantation. As alcohol disorders are known to reoccur in addicts after transplantation is complete, it is important to identify those at highest risk of alcohol consumption after the transplant is complete to try and prevent relapse.

Researchers at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center studied data collected on alcohol consumption occurring after a liver transplant. Interestingly, when compared with the general population, alcohol relapse rates are low among transplant patients. Out of the 208 patients examined, 54 percent reported no alcohol use after surgery.

For those patients who did return to alcohol consumption post surgery, certain patterns were evident. Two significant patterns emerged among these individuals. In one pattern, consumption of alcohol occurred early after the transplant and the individual quickly lost control over drinking habits. The other pattern found patients returning to heavy drinking years after surgery.

Researchers found that the amount of time an individual is sober prior to surgery is the most powerful element used to predict the likelihood of returning to alcohol. The risk of alcohol use is also increased when stresses occur for the individual immediately after surgery. The individuals who did return to alcohol had more problems overall, including worse health, increased stress, heightened pain and less energy.
 

Each year the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration gathers, organizes and publishes data about substance abuse in the U.S. They investigate many separate demographics within the American population to provide important information about the substance abuse treatment needs in the U.S.

A report recently released by SAMHSA details the challenges specific to the Hispanic-American population group, with the purpose of providing adequate assistance for those struggling with substance abuse. One important finding of the report highlights an elevated risk of substance abuse for children of Hispanic-American adults who were born outside the U.S., compared to their parents.

The report details its findings, showing that 37.2 percent of Hispanic-Americans who immigrated to the U.S. indicated that they had participated in binge drinking during the past month. By comparison, the rate for those born in the U.S. for binge drinking in the last month was 57.7 percent.

The trend holds steady for drug abuse. The rate among U.S. born Hispanic-American adults was 11.3 percent for past-month illicit drug use. Foreign born Hispanic-Americans had a rate of 3 percent for past-month illicit drug use.

When Hispanic-American levels of substance abuse are compared to national statistics, however, substance abuse levels are encouraging. Hispanic adults in the U.S. have a lower level of current alcohol use at 46.1 percent than the national average, which is 55.2 percent.

Hispanic-Americans also have lower levels of illicit drug use compared to the general population in the U.S. Hispanic-Americans report a rate of 6.6 percent, compared to 7.9 percent of the national population participating in illicit drug use.

There is one area in which Hispanic-Americans report substance abuse at a slightly higher level than the national average. When asked about binge drinking, 26.3 percent reported having participated in the past month, compared to 24.5 percent.

The findings discussed here are very broad. For instance, there is great variation between the specific subgroups categorized as Hispanic-American. For instance, Spanish-Americans have a past-month alcohol use rate that is well above the national average.

The information detailing the substance abuse treatment needs for Hispanic-Americans will be helpful in determining what services are still required. Further study may be necessary to understand the pressures that are associated with being born inside the U.S. versus immigrating, so that prevention efforts might be organized.
 

Sobering Statistics

No one is immune to the effects of drunk driving in society.

• According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), 37,261 people died in traffic crashes in 2008 (the latest data available), including 11,773 people who were killed in drunk-driving crashes involving a driver with an illegal blood alcohol content (BAC) of .08 or greater.

• Today, each of the 50 states and the District of Columbia has laws that prohibit driving with a BAC of .08 percent or above. This is due, in large part, to the efforts of organizations like Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD). All states also now have laws mandating 21 as the legal age to drink.

• It is estimated that about 3 in every 10 Americans will be involved in an alcohol-related crash at some point during their lives.

• Someone is killed every 45 minutes in the United States by a drunk driver.

• Traffic crashes are the number one killer of teens (ages 15 to 20), and 31 percent of teen traffic deaths are alcohol-related.

• A staggering 50 to 75 percent of drunk drivers whose licenses are suspended continue to drive.

• A first-time drunk driving offender has driven drunk 87 times, on average, before being arrested.

• A 2008 poll by AAA found that 80 percent of those surveyed supported requiring drivers who have been convicted of a DWI (driving while intoxicated) or DUI (driving under the influence) to use equipment that tests them for alcohol (an ignition interlock device). That same poll showed that 88 percent thought drunk driving is a serious traffic safety concern.

• According to statistics published by NHTSA, in 2000, alcohol-related crashes in the United States cost society an estimated $114.3 billion dollars. This included $51.1 billion in monetary costs and an estimated $63.2 billion in quality of life losses. People other than the drinking driver paid $71.6 billion of the alcohol-related crash bill, which is 63 percent of the total cost of the crashes. More than a decade later, the costs are likely many times greater – even though total drunk driving arrests are down, due to many reasons, including an increased focus on reducing drunk driving, punishing offenders, stricter sentencing, efforts at educating young people about the dangers of drinking and driving and alcohol use.

Millions of Lives Ruined

Beyond dollar estimates, the loss of human life for surviving family members and friends is a pain that never really goes away. Some families are shattered by the death of their loved one. Others try to bury their grief and stumble through life as if half-dead themselves, refusing to allow themselves to ever feel joy again.

Another point to consider is the after-effects or consequences of drunk driving to the drunk driver. He or she has to live with the knowledge that their actions resulted in serious injury or death of others. There may be a rupture in the family dynamic as the individual has to serve jail time, may lose a job, spouse, or custody of children. In addition, the convicted drunk driver faces fines, court costs, treatment costs, and increased insurance – if he or she doesn’t lose their driving license temporarily or permanently.

In short, millions of lives may be ruined – or severely impacted by drunk driving.

Efforts to Curb Drunk Driving

Various efforts have combined to help reduce the number of drunk drivers and drunk driving traffic accidents. These include, but are not limited to:

• Education programs
• Restrictions on alcohol advertising
• Increased use of sobriety checkpoints
• Increasing the number of police stops of suspected drunk drivers during high-risk periods (holidays, summer vacation, and weekends)
• Use of breathalyzers
• Suspension or revocation of driver’s license
• Imposing a graduated system of licensing for young drivers
• Impounding, confiscating or immobilizing vehicles of drunk drivers
• Confiscating license plates of drunk drivers or, in some states, issuing special license plates to convicted drunk drivers
• Requiring installation of ignition interlock devices on vehicles of convicted drunk drivers
• Requiring alcohol assessment, counseling, or treatment programs for convicted drunk drivers
• In lieu of incarceration, confining drunk drivers to their homes
• Closely monitoring high-risk drunk drivers
• Reducing the consumption of alcohol
• Suing servers in establishments for serving alcohol to obviously-intoxicated patrons who then go on to injure or kill someone in a motor vehicle crash
• Enforcing laws prohibiting serving of alcohol to minors and persons who are intoxicated
• Providing alternative transportation to drivers who have been drinking
• Increase severity of penalties for drunk driving
• Incarcerating convicted drunk drivers
• Fining convicted drunk drivers
• Recovering costs from convicted drunk drivers
• Requiring drunk drivers to listen to victim impact panels
 

The NSDUH 2008 report combined with the Drug Abuse Warning Network (which documents emergency department visits related to drug abuse) provide valuable information about alcohol-related injuries. In 2008, NSDUH reported that 26.4 percent of all persons aged 12 to 20 had consumed alcohol in the past month, and 17.4 percent were binge drinkers.

The 2008 DAWN Report provided data on 188,981 alcohol-related emergency department visits for adolescents between 12 and 20 years of age. Of these visits, 70 percent involved alcohol only, while 30 percent involved other drugs in addition to alcohol. 57.3 percent of those visits that were for a combination of drugs and alcohol involved marijuana.

More males than females visited the emergency department for alcohol-related injury, at 58.6 percent. Approximately 60 percent of the visits were made by individuals aged 18 to 20.

Almost 20 percent of individuals treated in an emergency department for alcohol-related injury required some type of follow-up care, including admission to the hospital, transfer to another healthcare facility or referral to substance abuse treatment. About 12 percent of alcohol-only visits required follow-up, but when drugs were part of the problem, about 35 percent required follow-up.

The emergency department is a resource for identifying high-risk adolescents in danger of developing an alcohol or drug dependency. The findings of the DAWN report highlight the significance of underage drinking as a costly public health concern. It suggests the need for focused attention in this area to prevent underage drinking.

The DAWN data is useful in identifying the extent of alcohol-related problems for young people aged 12 to 20. It is encouraging to note that the majority of the emergency department visits did not result in follow-up care for the young person.

The report is also encouraging because it supports previous research showing the effectiveness of brief motivational interventions that take place in the emergency department. The individuals who require follow-up care may provide a target group for additional education about the dangers of substance addiction.
 

Featured in a recent Science Daily release, this study found that the standard pep talk was effective when paired with an emergency room. Teens who had received a brief, motivational talk in the emergency room actually reduced their chances by half that they would experience problems with drinking and peer aggression.

In this study, researchers with the University of Michigan Health System offered help to some 726 adolescents who had reported a drink of beer, wine or liquor a minimum of two or three times in the course of the previous year.

Those teens who experienced a one-on-one talk with a therapist drive a 34 percent reduction in peer aggression, while those who received only a brochure had a 16 percent drop. Similar drops in alcohol use were also experienced.

Researchers highlighted that violence and alcohol use are preventable behaviors among teens. The emergency room of a hospital can act as a key location in the aim to reach those teens considered to be high risk. Such interventions in terms of alcohol use can reduce problems associated with its use by 32 percent over six months.

The key to these talks in particular is that they featured more complex information than just a passing conversation a parent may have with their teen. The focused sessions included exercises and tools to empower the teen to deal with risky situations and emerge drug and alcohol free.

An ignition interlocking device can be described as a small breathalyzer test that is installed into a vehicle. In order for the vehicle to start, the driver must provide a sample of their breath. If alcohol is detected, typically between .02 and .04 percent, the vehicle will not start. In essence, it is “locked up.” If a breath sample is given with non-detectable amounts of alcohol, the vehicle can be started, but many interlocking devices also require the driver to take random breath tests while they are operating the car.

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety reports that ignition interlocking devices are effective at reducing alcohol-related traffic violations by as much as 64 percent. Studies by the International Council on Alcohol, Drugs and Traffic Safety also cite the effectiveness of the machines, stating that they may cut repeated drunk driving incidents by as much as 95 percent.

If during operation, a driver’s level of alcohol on the breath rises enough to be detected by the device, an alarm will sound. The car’s lights may flash and horn blare until the car is stopped and shut off. If a driver decides not to give a breath sample, a message is stored and can be logged at 30 or 60-day periods, or whenever the device is calibrated. If violations are found on the vehicle’s log, additional punishments and fines can be rendered to the driver.

The fee for an ignition interlock device can vary, but may range from $65 to $100 monthly. A set up fee may also apply, as well as maintenance fees and those associated with logging and documenting the driver’s activities. Most DUI offenders must pay their own installation and ongoing expenses. The machines can also detect and report attempts to disable they system, and these attempts are logged with the driver’s motor vehicle department.

The length of time a driver must use an interlocking device depends on the state in which the DUI occurred, if the offender is a repeat drunk driver, and the severity of the crime. In some states, the use of an ignition interlocking device means an offender is allowed to get to work or school, instead of having a revoked license altogether. All but three states – South Dakota, Vermont and Alabama – use the devices for drunk drivers. Some mandate its installation for any DUI offense; others require it for offenders with repeated drunk driving arrests.

Though laws for ignition interlocking devices differ from state to state, and the devices can be utilized for varying situations involving DUI cases, the technology continues to show promise at reducing injuries and fatalities associated with drunk driving.

Trend analysis is important, as long as it accurately captures information that is used to address problems. In the case of alcohol consumption, it appears that the rise in the proportion of drinkers has risen across Whites, Blacks and Hispanics, as well as both genders.

A recent Science Daily release focused on a study conducted by the University Of Texas School Of Public Health in which the importance of examining all groups was highlighted. Different population groups can present varying trends in drinking and problems, making it essential to study all groups.

In this cross-ethnic alcohol trend analysis, alcohol consumption was examined across Whites, Blacks and Hispanics in the United States from 1992 to 2002.

Researchers highlight that Blacks and Hispanics tend to live in communities where alcohol is more available, there is more exposure to outdoor alcohol advertising and where these individuals have been targeted by special advertising. At the same time, they also have access to fewer personal and community resources to respond to such challenges.

In the study, Whites increased their mean number of drinks, whereas Blacks and Hispanics did not show an increase. All three ethnic groups showed a rise in drinking five or more drinks in a day, as well as drinking to intoxication. This rise was limited, however, to those who drank at least once a month.

Drinking trends are linked by factors such as the drinking habits of the individuals within a group. A change in sociodemographic composition can also influence drinking habits.
 

The term blood alcohol content describes the quantity of alcohol in a person’s blood in terms of weight per unit of blood volume. For example, if a person’s blood alcohol content is 0.10 percent, then alcohol makes up one-tenth of a percent of the person’s blood. Reaching the legal blood alcohol content limit of 0.08 equates to approximately one 12 ounce beverage with an alcohol content of at least 4.5 percent.

However, some studies show that with a blood alcohol content of 0.05 percent, a driver may be two times more likely to be in a car accident than someone who hasn’t consumed any alcohol. While the exact level of connection between lesser blood alcohol levels and driving accidents is still under investigation, studies do show a much higher risk for car accidents is present when the blood alcohol level exceeds 0.08 percent (approximately three drinks).

One of the dangers of alcohol is that it moves quickly to the brain once consumed. Cognitive abilities are affected, often causing car crashes and other accidents. When a person drinks alcohol, it is absorbed partly in the stomach where it then passes on to the blood. The majority of the alcohol content of a beverage is absorbed in the intestines, then taken by the blood to the brain. This is the point at which the drinker begins to notice the “buzz” and other symptoms of drinking.

Additional problems associated with rising blood alcohol content include slow or changed eye activity, meaning a driver cannot estimate distances and driving speed accurately. In comparison to someone who hasn’t been drinking, a drunk driver’s reaction speed can be slowed by 10 to 30 percent. Once the person has consumed enough alcohol to reach a blood level of 0.08 percent, they are ten times more likely to be involved in a car crash. Blood alcohol levels of 0.50 percent or more can bring on coma and a high chance of death; at 1.0 percent, death is certain.

Not only are drunk drivers experiencing impaired judgment, vision and reaction times, they may be less likely to put on a seatbelt and obey traffic laws – factors that make death
from an alcohol-related accident more likely.

Interestingly, women’s bodies absorb and process more alcohol than men – up to 20 percent more. Other factors affecting blood alcohol content include how quickly the person is drinking, and a person’s weight and metabolism. The quicker the drinks are consumed, the higher the levels of alcohol that are stored in the bloodstream. Having eaten before or during drinking slows the effect of the alcohol, as do fruit juices mixed with the alcohol.

As research continues toward the connections between even light drinking and the likelihood of accidents, new regulations could create safer highways and fewer alcohol-related deaths.

The survey is administered annually. In the most recent survey, over 45,000 students reported from almost 400 schools across the country. The survey targets eighth, 10th and 12th graders who are given the survey by researchers at the University of Michigan.

The recently released results show that trends are shifting in the attitudes teens have about drugs and their use of them. One area that showed significant improvement is the use of methamphetamine. Only 1.2 percent of students reported having used methamphetamine in the last year, which is the lowest rate since the questions regarding methamphetamine were added in 1999. In addition, fewer students say that methamphetamine is easily obtainable, compared with five years ago (14 percent versus 19.5 percent).

Another significant shift showed that cigarette smoking is at its lowest for all three ages in the history of the survey. Only 2.7 percent of eighth graders identified themselves as daily smokers, as compared with 10.4 percent in 2006. However, there is concern regarding the rise in smokeless tobacco use reflected in the recent survey. The rate of 10th graders using smokeless tobacco was higher than it was last year.

NIDA director Dr. Nora Volkow explains that this information is very important. The decline in cigarette use means longer lives for these teens, and the rise in smokeless tobacco use gives the NIDA critical information about where to focus their efforts.

Some measures on the survey were new this year. For instance, the survey included questions about the hallucinogenic salvia leaf, and the stimulant Adderall, used to treat ADHD. Many students are acquiring prescription drugs illegally, usually from a friend or relative. 5.7 percent of students reported having used the salvia leaf, and over 5 percent had also used Adderall.

The 2009 survey highlights the use of prescription and over-the-counter drugs by teenagers. Seven of the ten substances abused by the surveyed students were either prescription or over-the-counter drugs.

Although alcohol consumption has declined overall, the 2009 shows a softening of attitudes toward alcohol, with fewer students identifying binge drinking as a dangerous behavior.

The information provided by the survey of high school students is critical in helping the government decide how to allocate funds for education and prevention. As the attitudes of the teen population shifts, the focus of education and prevention will be able to shift with them.