FRIDAY, March 15 (HealthDay
News) -- Hands-free phone
conversations or texting
while driving are as
dangerous as getting behind
the wheel after having too
much to drink, a small new
study finds.
The study included 12
university students who
took two driving-simulation
tests -- once after
consuming alcohol and once
while using headphones
and a microphone to
simulate a hands-free
system. People who were
habitual drinkers or had
never consumed alcohol
were not included in the
study.
The participants, who had
driving licenses, had to
maintain their vehicle's
position in the center of the
left lane at a speed of
between 40 and 50 miles
per hour, and brake every
time a truck appeared.
Researchers from Australia
and Spain found that when
having a phone
conversation that required a
lot of attention or when
answering a text message,
the participants' levels of
distraction were equal to
the effects of having a blood
alcohol concentration (BAC)
that was above the legal
level in both countries (0.5
grams per liter).
"When the conversation
using the hands-free was
simple, the effects were
comparable to a BAC level of
0.04 grams per liter," study
co-author Sumie Leung Shuk
Man, a researcher at the
University of Barcelona, said
in a news release from the
Spanish Foundation for
Science and Technology.
"However, when more
attention was required,
their alcohol-level analogue
shot up to 0.7 grams per
liter, which is above the
legal limit in both countries
yet below in other
countries, like the United
States or United Kingdom,
where up to 0.8 grams per
liter is allowed. When
answering text messages,
the rate stood at 1 gram per
liter, which is illegal in all of
these countries," Leung
Shuk Man said.
"Our results suggest that the
use of hands-free devices
could also put drivers at
risk," Leung Shuk Man said.
"Although they should be
allowed, they require more
research to determine how
they should be regulated
and, of course, the thorough
knowledge that national
authorities should have
regarding their pros and
cons."
News) -- Hands-free phone
conversations or texting
while driving are as
dangerous as getting behind
the wheel after having too
much to drink, a small new
study finds.
The study included 12
university students who
took two driving-simulation
tests -- once after
consuming alcohol and once
while using headphones
and a microphone to
simulate a hands-free
system. People who were
habitual drinkers or had
never consumed alcohol
were not included in the
study.
The participants, who had
driving licenses, had to
maintain their vehicle's
position in the center of the
left lane at a speed of
between 40 and 50 miles
per hour, and brake every
time a truck appeared.
Researchers from Australia
and Spain found that when
having a phone
conversation that required a
lot of attention or when
answering a text message,
the participants' levels of
distraction were equal to
the effects of having a blood
alcohol concentration (BAC)
that was above the legal
level in both countries (0.5
grams per liter).
"When the conversation
using the hands-free was
simple, the effects were
comparable to a BAC level of
0.04 grams per liter," study
co-author Sumie Leung Shuk
Man, a researcher at the
University of Barcelona, said
in a news release from the
Spanish Foundation for
Science and Technology.
"However, when more
attention was required,
their alcohol-level analogue
shot up to 0.7 grams per
liter, which is above the
legal limit in both countries
yet below in other
countries, like the United
States or United Kingdom,
where up to 0.8 grams per
liter is allowed. When
answering text messages,
the rate stood at 1 gram per
liter, which is illegal in all of
these countries," Leung
Shuk Man said.
"Our results suggest that the
use of hands-free devices
could also put drivers at
risk," Leung Shuk Man said.
"Although they should be
allowed, they require more
research to determine how
they should be regulated
and, of course, the thorough
knowledge that national
authorities should have
regarding their pros and
cons."
