Drinking and driving no laughing matter

Having had one too many, a bar drinker was beginning to display his ugly side. Eyeing an unescorted woman he leaned over and whispered loudly to her: "Hey!

"How about it babe, you and me tonight?" Irritated, the woman got up to move seats, but the man loudly protested, "Come on Sweetie, you look like you could use the money - I'll even throw in an extra R5."

She looked back at him and replied just as loudly, "What makes you think I charge by the inch?"

There are hundreds of drinking jokes, but drinking and driving is no laughing matter; especially as many South Africans are killed daily as a result of alcohol.

In fact, various articles show that an average of 10000 South Africans are killed annually as a result of drinking and driving and that in most cases the driver is over the legal limit of 0.05 grams per 100ml of blood.

What is really scary is that an increased number of high profile people and politicians are among the negligent drivers; which speaks volumes about their attitude towards their own self worth, and dare I say, intelligence.

But alcohol is not the enemy - the problem is the misuse of alcohol; not knowing when to stop drinking, and getting behind the wheel after knocking back a few is just a plain stupid choice which could lead to a number of life-changing problems.

What not too many people seem to know is that drinking alcohol is actually a science. It requires one to possess a certain level of intelligence and mental capacity in order to enjoy a drink, while not losing sight of the equation in which time and units of alcohol determine when you have had too much drink, what your blood alcohol level is in relation to your sobriety and your chances of being involved in an accident.

The connection between alcohol, its effect on your brain and driving abilities has short circuited in many people's heads.

Some people do not even know the effects of alcohol on the brain; that there is a difference in rate of absorption between men and women, or that weight plays a major role in determining alcohol levels.

Ladies, FYI - one 240ml glass of red/white wine is equivalent to three slices of white bread (in case you were wondering why the liquid diet isn't working!).

There are many effects of alcohol on the brain and if my high school biology serves me correctly, I vividly remember that the brain consists of three major parts: the cerebrum, the cerebellum and the medulla.

The cerebrum controls advanced functions, such as reasoning, vision, recognition and emotion.

Alcohol lowers inhibitions and affects judgment, movement, vision and speech. The cerebellum mostly controls movement, and affects reflexes, balance and co-ordination.

The medulla controls basic survival functions such as heartbeat and breathing, both of which can be stopped entirely by excessive alcohol consumption.

To understand the next bit needs a sober and clear mind. Picture what is happening in your brain right now.

Nerves carry messages to different parts of your body with instructions to do things.

The brain and the nerves are made up of neurons that carry various messages to and from your brain. The neurons do not actually touch one another - there are spaces between them called synapses, (some people seem to have more synapses than neurons!).

Electrical signals carry messages the length of the neuron and neurotransmitters carry the messages across the synapse to the next neuron.

It is in the synapses that alcohol affects the working of your brain. A couple of drinks will affect the efficiency with which neurotransmitters carry messages between the neurons.

Hence, someone who has had too much to drink slurs their speech, cannot walk in a straight line, drives in a weaving pattern across the road and is slow to hit the brakes in an emergency situation.

Tonight being a Friday, many people turn into weekend party warriors. Let's do a quick alcohol consumption forecast. You go out tonight and over the course of seven hours, consume three cocktails and four doubles of your favorite poison.

That equals 15 units of alcohol, and your blood alcohol level (BAL) will be approximately 205g putting you four times over the legal limit!

When you wake up at 6am the following morning with a massive babalaas - you are in fact still drunk and your BAL would still be at a staggering 150g (three times over the limit)!

After suffering through the morning, you might be surprised to learn that you will still be over the legal limit by lunch time, as your BAL will be 0.6g, and that if you had an accident at 4pm, you could be charged with DUI as your BAL would be 0.15g.

Only at approximately 6pm would you actually be sober!

While there are many deterrents in place to help curb drunk driving, your best safety feature might be not to drink and drive in the first instance.

In certain states of the US, lobbyists are seeking legal permission to name and shame drunk drivers using Facebook and SA is not too far behind; the KZN Transport MEC has already published 50 names of drunk drivers in the local press.

So, unless humiliating your family, friends, colleagues and superiors is on your bucket list, tonight might be a good time to conceptualise a new drinking "strategy".