GMC 2003 Savana - Manual (Page 201)

There ib a gender difference, too. Women generally
have a lower relalive percentage oí body waler
than men. Since alcohol Is carried in body watetf ihia
means lhat a wonf^an generally will reach a higher ВАС
level than a mar> of her same body v;eight when
each tias the same number of dririks.
The law In an increasing number oí U.&. states, arrd
throughout Canacta, sets the l&gal limit at D.OB percent.
In some other countries, the limh is even lower. For
examplef it Is 0.05 percent In both France and Germany.
The ВАС limit tor all cominercia] drivers In the United
Slales is 0.04 percent.
The ВАС will be over 0.10 percent attgr throe to six
drinhs (in one hour). Of course, as we've seen, it
depends ort how much alcohol is in me drinks, and how
quickly the person drinks them.
Bui the ability to drive is affected well below a ВАС ol
0-10 pgrqani, Research shows that the driving skills
ol many people are impaired
at a ВАС approaching
0.05 percent, and that the oticcis are worse at night Atl
drtvers are impaired al ВАС levels above 0.05 percent.
Statistics show that the chance of being in a colN&ion
increases sharply for drivers who have a ВАС of
0.05 percent of above. A driver
wilti A ВАС level of
0.06 percent has doubled bis or her chance ol having a
collision. Al a В
ас ievei of 0.1 D percent, the chance
of this driver having a coNisk>n is 12 timqg graatar; at a
level cf 0.15 parcenl, the chance is £5 tirnes greater^
The body takes about an hour to rid ilselt ol lhe alcohol
in one dririh. No amouni of соНеа or number ol cold
showers will speed that up "ГП be caretul* isn'l lhe nghl
answer. What it there’s an emergency, a ncad to
lake sudden action, as when a chid darts into the
sireat? A person with even a moderale ВАС might not
be ab1& to react quickly enough to avoid lhe collision.
There's somethirg else about drinking gnri driving lhat
many people don't know. Medical research shows
that alcohol In a person's syslem can make crash
injuries worso, cspecialiy infuries to lhe braiini, spinal
cord or heart. This means that when anyone who
has beer) drinking — driver or passenger — is in a
crash, lhat person's chance ot baing killed or
permanenlly disabled is higher than it the person had
nol bean drinking
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