We have seen how drinkers lose their abilities bit by bit as their blood alcohol concentration (BAC) grows. For this reason, the government has set “legal limits” for BACs and driving a car. If a person’s BAC reaches the legal limits, he or she cannot legally drive.

Many people do not know how quickly someone can become dangerous behind the wheel of a car. A person begins to show some effects of alcohol after only part of one drink. Most drinkers’ blood alcohol concentration reaches the level of “legal intoxication” after one to two drinks.

That means that a driver is a real danger on the road after ANY drinking. In fact, for a person who is under age 21, any amount of alcohol in the blood equals legal intoxication. If the laws about drinking and driving seem strict, think about this:

16,653 people died in alcohol-related crashes in 2000 (the last year for which data are available). In addition, about 300,000 people are injured every year in alcohol-related car crashes.

I'm not old enough to drive yet! How does drinking and driving affect me?

Drinking and driving DOES affect kids. Thousands of kids are killed or injured each year in alcohol-related crashes. We can’t control what goes on in the other cars on the road, but we can control ourselves. For young people, that means…

Never ride in a car with a driver that has been drinking.!

What do you say if you are out at a friend’s house, his or her parent offers you a ride home, and you know the parent has been drinking?

Say No Thanks! and explain that your parents are planning to pick you up.

What if they keep insisting that they should drive you home to save your parents the trouble? Well, then you will have to be totally honest. Here’s a polite way to do it:

My parents tell me never to ride in a car with someone who has been drinking. I'll get in a lot of trouble if I do.

Sometimes the truth hurts. But the fact is that your safety is more important than that person’s feelings.